


You plus Me equals?

by lunaryu (zeroshikidarkangel)



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Festivals, High School, Humor, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-24
Updated: 2014-02-05
Packaged: 2017-11-14 23:09:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 102,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/520480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zeroshikidarkangel/pseuds/lunaryu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>In which Kuroko is forced to cross-dress, Kagami becomes an unwilling Prince, and the others crack at the hilarity. GoM is trying to sabotage the event much to their respective partners' chagrin. It's Seirin Cultural Festival and its craziness in one package.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Casting and The Misunderstanding

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke and its characters belong to Tadatoshi Fujimaki. Luna only plays with the characters and no profit is made from this fan fiction.**  
>  **Warning:** _shounen ai, slight oOC-ness, language, possible spelling mistakes and grammar errors, craziness of high school boys *lol*_  
>  **A/N:** I know it's crazy, but I'm in the mood to laugh anyway *shrugs* More love for Kaga/Kuro. I can't get enough of this hilarious pair~ <3

**Chapter 1: _The Casting and The Misunderstanding_**

* * *

Seirin High was a new built high school. It was only two years in the matter of age. But of course, even if this school was new, they had a lot of events to advertise their school facility to the potential candidate of the new students in spring. One of those events was of course... a school festival.

Thus, as for the school policy, it was mandatory for all the students to participate in the open school festival that was held twice a year: a sport festival in autumn and a cultural festival in spring.

This year spring was no different. A cultural festival was planned out for three days at the end of the season and every class from the first to the third year had to present something to enliven the annual event.

In 2-B class, at this moment, at the end of the day, a very cranky Kagami Taiga was sulking and muttering curses as the girls in his class were ganging up on him.

"It's decided, Kagami Taiga. You will become a prince." The 2-B class leader, a very willful teenage girl with wavy shoulder-length black hair and a pair of sharp dark-grey eyes behind the oval-shaped glasses, smirked at the cornered _Tiger_ who narrowed his ruby colored eyes at her back in annoyance.

"This is coercion! I said I don't want to!" Kagami protested angrily, but that didn't seem to deter Sasaki's spirit from exploiting him.

"Ha, it's your own fault for falling asleep in the middle of _our_ class meeting to decide what we will do in this upcoming spring cultural festival," Sasaki, the class-leader, said, smirking more widely. "And Kuroko-kun had tried to wake you up five times already. You are just so hopeless," she huffed after that, looking down on the taller and bigger redhead.

Kagami glanced slightly at Kuroko who didn't seem to pay any attention to them because he was reading a novel book at that moment. The red-head muttered some more curses in undertone, especially at Kuroko for not trying harder to wake him up earlier that he landed onto this mess, before he turned back to face Sasaki and her underlings (meaning the other class representatives).

"Why is it me of all people? I can't even study right, let alone memorizing dialogues for a fucking play!" Kagami complained some more indignantly.

"Of course, that will be a problem, but Kuroko-kun will help you from the shadow," Sasaki was smiling, a very sickeningly sweet smile that created a sense of foreboding, especially for Kagami at the present.

Kagami squeaked in response and Kuroko's ears perked slightly as he closed his book. "That did not come up in the meeting earlier." The teal haired boy said before he turned to face Sasaki as well, a glint of uncertainty in his sky-blue eyes even though he was expressionless as usual.

"Well, it can't be helped. Kagami-kun is an idiot after all," another girl in short, light-brown hair and dark-brown eyes, in the name of Ayasaki, piped in. She was the vice-leader in 2-B, an equally annoying girl with bigger ego than even the so ever proud Sasaki.

"True~, and just to ensure that the idiot doesn't ruin our play, Kuroko-kun will support him~," Sasaki grinned. The other one chuckled at the obvious misery in Kagami's pale face, and Kagami could almost see the heart at the end of the bespectacled girl's sentence just then.

 _Sadistic bitch!_ —Kagami was itching to do something harmful to the girl, but he wouldn't. He wasn't raised to treat girls roughly after all.

"But I already volunteered to help the preparation from behind the stage," Kuroko almost sounded arguing as he said it, at least to Kagami's ears, but it was clear that none of the classmates cared or heard or even _noticed_ his protest.

Kagami felt rather sorry for Kuroko, but he was feeling even sorrier for himself, so he wouldn't say anything.

"Well, then, we'll come up with the script soon!" Sasaki clasped her hands looking satisfied (because she wouldn't hear any objection of her decision), and whirled around to walk back towards her respective place: in front of the class.

"Wait a damn second! You don't have any script yet?! Then why am I chosen to play the prince if we haven't even decided what play we will do in the festival?" Kagami immediately protested again because it wasn't fair to decide one-sidedly like that against his will.

"We already decided the title, you silly!" Sasaki laughed like a queen and she was mocking Kagami with that laugh. Kagami was sure of it.

"That's why you are hopeless, idiotic Kagami-kun," Ayasaki gave him a long helpless, irritated sigh.

"Would you stop calling me idiot?!" of course Kagami yelled at the insult, not even bothering to tone down his loud boisterous voice because it completely fell on deaf ears as the vice-leader continued her words without pause.

"You were sleeping the whole time you didn't even know we already decided a title! We only need our beautiful, talented script-writer and producer, Tamaki-chan, to write her beautiful story and we will surely land the first rank of popular play this year!" Ayasaki then introduced another girl with straight-long dark-chocolate hair, who looked rather shy actually, but she was beaming with passion as well as she spoke.

"I will make you the most charming prince in the play, Kagami-kun!" Tamaki's honey-colored eyes were sparkling and Kagami felt like he wanted to cover his face and squat down in exhaustion (or maybe he actually did, literally).

The girls in 2-B class were crazy. All of them.

"Kuroko! Say something to them, damn it!" Kagami was trying to seek aid from his always quiet shadow, but Kuroko could only shrug at this.

"The girls rule, Kagami-kun. You should have realized it the moment you entered this class," Kuroko's tone was even, but Kagami could have sworn he saw the smaller boy shudder.

Kagami groaned. Kuroko was right to the point. The majority of students in 2-B, after he and Kuroko entered the second year, were female. They were always walking and working in groups, so the male students didn't have any chance to defy or to over-power them when they decided to gang up on them. Worse, they were obnoxious too! They wouldn't stop bothering people until they got what they wanted.

"Alright, I get it!" Kagami gave up, then. It didn't matter if he became a prince. They would know it was a mistake to let him play the part because he surely would fuck up on stage, and they could just wallow in their self-pity for even considering him to do it right in the first place.

"NICE!" All the girls (even the minions) gave Kagami thumbs up joyfully while the guys (except Kuroko, maybe) offered him condolences because those rabid girls wouldn't let him off the hook if he didn't do it seriously.

Girls could be _very scary_ when they were upset after all.

Kuroko just gave out a long sigh at this, honestly, he looked rather troubled.

"What is it?" Kagami noticed, of course, and he was curious of why Kuroko would be sighing that noticeably.

"You have not heard the majority of the decisions made in the meeting regarding the players in the drama, Kagami-kun," Kuroko said, pointing at the blackboard.

"Huh?" Kagami turned his gaze, following Kuroko's pointer finger to the blackboard.

There were some notes on the blackboard. Point one, the drama title: "Doll Princess"; point two, the main characters, Prince: "Kagami Taiga"; point three, to spice up the drama, unusual players: all males, etc…

…

…

"WHAT?!" Upon digesting the information on the blackboard, Kagami couldn't help screeching in total shock and mortification.

"What is it now, Kagami-kun?" Sasaki threw an irritated glare at Kagami for being so loud all of sudden, surprising the others.

"Hold on! What the heck!? All the players are MALE?!" Of course that was the problem, because "The title is a fucking 'Doll Princess'! _Princess!_ Shouldn't there be at least a girl to fill up _that role_ in there?!"

"Like we said before, it's to spice up the drama. It's a love-comedy of 'a doll that falls in love with a prince'. It will be boring if we have the usual boy-girl relationship, so as the genius from Drama Club of Seirin, I decide to use the _all male_ players to spice things up!" Sasaki laughed again haughtily and the other (male) students' sweat dropped at that (except maybe Kuroko. Jeez, he was so hard to read as usual), while the other girls squealed in delight complimenting Sasaki's brilliant idea.

"You've got to be _fucking_ kidding me! So you expect me to be lovey-dovey on the stage with a guy in front of the whole school?! Are you insane?!" Kagami exploded; face in a dark shade of red, totally horrified.

"What are you talking about? It's a drama. It's common to use a male actor to play a woman's role," Ayasaki frowned, huffing at Kagami in visible annoyance now.

"But—!" Kagami was still protesting.

"No buts! Or what, are you that kind of guy… the homo-phobic kind?" Sasaki jabbed Kagami's chest with her index finger now, as if she was daring him to protest further.

"That's NOT it! It's the humiliation, you—!" Kagami muttered curses under his breath _again_ , not wanting to hurt the girls' delicate ( _ha, as if!_ ) feelings. "Think about the guy who has to wear a skirt for your amusement! He will become the entire school laughing stock!" He was seriously angry now. Really, those girls were mean bitches!

The class fell into silence after the outburst and every single pair of eyes was focused on Kagami now. Kagami grew antsy as the dumbstruck gazes were still on him even after a minute or two passed.

"What?!" Kagami barked at them, feeling very uncomfortable.

"Kagami-kun… your speech just now was so prince-like…!" The girls immediately swooned at him and Kagami had the sudden urge to bolt from the scary –overly affectionate- eyes that were on him.

"What the heck are you saying?!" Kagami yelled again, exasperated to the max, flushing furiously as tell-tale of Goosebumps prickled on his skin.

"Well, for Kagami to think about us to that extent is surprising…" Some boys chuckled slightly.

"I think if it's with Kagami, it will be worth it to play the princess part," some other joked and Kagami recoiled at the thought of getting affectionate with another guy on stage _again_.

"Can you stop being so gross!?" Kagami shouted more loudly, face as red as ripe tomatoes while the other were laughing fondly at him for being so _cute_.

"Oh, man, Kagami…! You are adorable!" One of the guys whistled and Kagami turned even redder at that as the others laughed harder.

"Shut up!" Kagami just couldn't help feeling so embarrassed. He should just shut his overly big mouth up so he could spare himself some dignity.

Sasaki was still giggling madly as she said, "Don't worry, Kagami-kun. We will pick a guy that's small and slender enough to fit the girl's clothes that no one will know that he's a guy at all. How does that sound?"

"Aah? But there's no guy like that in our class," one of the guys said.

"Of course there is," Ayasaki smirked, her dark-brown eyes glinting mischievously.

"Who…?"

The male students all immediately looked at each other simultaneously, trying to measure if they could fit enough for the role, and they would have missed _him_ if only he wasn't trying to sneak out of the class.

A hand gripped at his collar as he was pulled back inside. Tamaki was smiling at the teal haired boy who could only set his deadpanned look even though Kagami could imagine the boy to be wincing inwardly.

"I think Kuroko-kun can pass wearing a girl's clothes without giving away that he's a guy," Tamaki giggled heartily.

"Oh! That's right! There's Kuroko!"

"Man, almost forgot that he's here!"

"Yeah, yeah, if it's Kuroko, I think he's slender enough to fit girl's clothes!"

"Huh, we have that kind of guy in our class?"

"Moron! He's been with us since the beginning!"

"Well, he always has so little presence, though…"

"Yes, people won't notice him there on stage at all…"

"He can definitely play the princess' part without attracting too much attention…"

Kagami was sweating bullets as he heard the comments came one after another (and sometimes together) from the guys. Those bastards were throwing Kuroko to the wolf's den to save themselves!

"It will be awesome! Kuroko-kun will be so cute in light-blue long dress!" Ayasaki squealed again as her pupils turned into heart-shape.

"So true~," Sasaki nodded eagerly while fawning and Tamaki gave another giggle happily.

"But isn't he supposed to help me with my dialogues from the shadow?" Kagami tried to save his friend from the impending doom and humiliation to be forced into wearing girl's clothes.

As hilarious as that view would be, Kagami wasn't heartless enough to let Kuroko be humiliated in front of the entire school.

"That's why! Since Kuroko-kun will the 'Doll Princess', he will be on stage the whole time as the doll! So he can help you without being detected from his spot if you forget any dialogue!" Sasaki lifted another thumb at Kagami with a total confidence in her tone and eyes.

Kagami groaned again because he couldn't make excuses anymore. "You must have decided it from the start that he'd get that role, mustn't you?!" He accused, totally able to read the girl's intention.

"What are you talking about? It's just decided!" Of course Sasaki blinked at him several times, fake smile and evil laugh escaping from her mouth. Damn witch!

Kuroko, on the other hand, hadn't said a damn thing since the girls one-sidedly (again) decided that the smaller boy would be the leading actor for the other main role. The secretary (also a girl) immediately wrote down on her notes and added the writing on the blackboard for point two, the main characters, Prince: "Kagami Taiga", Doll Princess: "Kuroko Tetsuya."

Then, the girls cheered wholeheartedly in total unison. Even some of the guys cheered because they were off the hook from playing the princess' role. The rest seemed to have enough decency to look sheepish and guilty for their friends' misfortune.

"Kagami-kun."

Kagami yelped as he heard the sudden voice of his quiet friend who, at some points, had escaped from Tamaki –who currently was talking animatedly with Ayasaki and Sasaki– and already stood beside the redhead at that moment.

"W-wha—?! When did you get here?!" Kagami couldn't help yelling at Kuroko for surprising him like that.

"I am a bit peeved," Kuroko said, tonelessly as always (and not bothering to answer Kagami this time), but the redhead could see a tick of annoyance on the bluenette's temple.

"I know. Tell me about it," Kagami groaned more as he thought they wouldn't be able to get away from this predicament.

"This is entirely you fault," Kuroko said again.

"I kn—WHAT?!" Kagami snapped as he heard that. "How on earth is it _MY_ fault?!"

Kuroko huffed. "I honestly hate you right now."

That line had just turned into a very sharp arrow and stabbed Kagami point blank, figuratively, of course, but it might as well be a real arrow because it hurt nonetheless.

"WHY?!" of course, Kagami felt the need to protest hard at that sudden exclamation of hatred, out of nowhere. He even tried to save Kuroko from that girly role, damn it!

Kuroko fixed his gaze on the blackboard, stubbornly refusing to look at Kagami and maybe it was only Kagami's imagination but his cheeks were rather pink, slightly… almost unnoticeable, but the hue taint was there.

Kagami blinked slightly in surprise as the thought that Kuroko was probably very embarrassed… or _was that happiness?_ —fleeted inside his mind. But, damn his shadow for being so hard to read!

Well, at least Kagami knew Kuroko didn't mean his words even though it was clear that the shorter boy was pissed off.

Anyway, the meeting progressed from there as everyone (and he meant _everyone_ , including him even though he did nothing but complain all the times) talked about the other roles and who would do what. In the end it was decided that all the males got roles on stage while the girls would be working on the costumes and properties.

"Okay, turns out, Tamaki's script is half-way done." Sasaki informed the others while giving the black haired girl a ' _Good Job!_ ' gesture. "She will finish it tonight so you guys better be ready to receive the copies tomorrow. Then we will give you a week to practice and memorize your dialogues before we will practice the scene in auditorium," she continued after everything was concluded.

"You've got to be joking! A week?!" Kagami protested again for the umpteenth time, because there was NO WAY would he be able to do that between classes and basketball practice.

But as always, Kagami's protest was futile because Ayasaki just smiled sweetly at him and then said, "Shut your hole and take it up like a man, sissy."

"Gaaaaah! That girl is super annoying! Who does she think she is?!" Kagami was yelling and cursing obscenities that Kuroko had to pull him out of class to stop the ruckus.

A few minutes after the meeting was dismissed and everyone was on their way home… or to do any other club activities….

Kuroko still wasn't talking to Kagami and it was getting in Kagami's nerves because Kuroko was also _still_ following the redhead from behind. He couldn't just ignore the guy because of what happened earlier in class.

"Hey, are you still sulking?" Kagami had had enough of the silent treatment and grunted at the boy, turning his head to face Kuroko.

"I am certainly not sulking," Kuroko replied flatly, not stopping his steps and walking past Kagami who immediately walked again to follow.

"Liar! Then why don't you face this way?" Kagami scoffed.

Kuroko was silent at that.

Kagami grumbled. "Come on. It wasn't my fault that you were picked as a princess! I don't even want to be the prince!"

"…-tention…"

"What?" Kagami didn't hear what Kuroko was saying and the boy still wasn't facing him.

Kuroko straightened his body and took a deep breath before he turned around to look at Kagami in the eyes. "It was because Kagami-kun easily catches everyone's attention that those girls want you to become the prince. You are the tallest in our class and boisterous too boot. Moreover, they shouldn't have noticed me at all, but because I am a very much opposite of you, they somehow find us _fascinating_ to be together, so they decide to pair us up from the start," he explained then, still emotionless and toneless, but there was a certain edge in his voice that Kagami didn't understand.

Kagami blinked once before huffing. "So what, it's not like we're really together."

"That's the point. They thought we are," Kuroko pointed out.

…

…

"WHAT?!" after a long silence, Kagami screeched again, totally shocked at that revelation.

Kuroko could only cover his face with his palm, seeming slightly exasperated for once.

**End of Chapter 1**

**Tbc...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *lol* yes, I want to make something funny once in awhile. This will be Kaga/Kuro (somewhat in a funny way), but it's more to everyone's opinion that they are a couple instead of themselves admitting it *grins* And yes, there will be GoM as well, getting the wrong idea *rotfl* Can't want to create funny scenes later on~
> 
> Con-crits are always expected as usual! XDDD
> 
> P.s. Will be working on Signal and this one for the moment! *hearts*


	2. The Big News and The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the misunderstanding continues, Kagami practices lines painfully and the GoM finds out about the plays...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for taking so long updating this. I'm just not good at multitasking. My mind is too full with Signal plot and progress… ahaha.
> 
> Well then, I hoped you are still interested to read the continuation, so… here's the 2nd chapter! ENJOY!

  
**Chapter 2:** _**The Big News and the Plan** _   


* * *

"KYAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Riko doubled over, laughing her ass off while rolling around the court-side after she heard what her junior had said in once upon a morning practice.

"D-don't laugh that hard—please!" Kagami shouted furiously (even though he still tried to speak with his strange _keigo_ ), face red in total embarrassment at Riko's display of overreacting laughter.

"C-coach, you're laughing too pft—!" Hyuuga's voice cracked, his body shaking slightly in supreme effort not to laugh at his junior's misery after the redhead broke the news to the team.

"Ka—Kagami as a Prince…! Oh my GOD! Ahahahahaha! Tha-that's so epically hilarious! Kagami… a _prince_?!" Riko was still unable to stomach the idea as she continued laughing madly, because seriously, Kagami as a prince? That must have been the dumbest idea she had ever heard.

"W-what's so funny about me as a prince?!" Kagami yelled again, obviously sulking now and pouting slightly. His face turned redder if it was possible. Oh, he could look adorable too sometimes.

"Kagami- _ouji_ (1), eh?" Izuki laughed as well at that, followed by Koganei who called, "Yo! Kagami-ouji!" and then held his stomach painfully for laughing too much right after.

Tsuchida grinned widely and Mitobe covered his mouth, making a rueful expression. Even though he didn't outright laugh at Kagami, he was definitely as amused as the others.

"You guys are a bunch of sadists! Can you at least feel sorry rather than turning it into a laughing matter!?" Kagami complained loudly. His head already steamed at this point.

Everyone went quiet for a moment and looked at each other for a few seconds before they said, "Nah. Pft—ahahahahaha!" and then exploded in hard laughter _again_.

Veins of annoyance and frustration were popping out one by one on Kagami's head and face. His body was obviously shaking badly, totally in the verge of exploding like a volcano before Kuroko showed up out of nowhere and jabbed Kagami on his side.

Instead of erupting in anger, Kagami howled in pain at the violent treatment. "Ku-Kroko, you bastard...! That freaking HURTS, you ass! What the hell was that for?!" Of course finally the redhead yelled in furry at the usually invisible boy while nursing his abused side.

"You are talking too much. Now our senpais know about it too,"— _you idiot_ , was left unsaid, but Kuroko stared at Kagami with eerie looking despite his toneless voice and expressionless face. Kagami actually cringed and stepped back slightly at the sight.

"Aha! Kuroko-kun will be playing too in the drama?" Riko widened her grin at this _inevitable_. "What role will you play?" she was definitely interested as she stared at him sparklingly.

Kuroko turned to face the brunet coach, but he seemed rather reluctant to answer her question.

"He'll play the princess," Kagami casually answered, seemingly still annoyed at the smaller boy for jabbing him so hard on his ribs just now.

Then the gym fell into silence approximately for three seconds before suddenly three pairs of demonic eyes were focused on Kagami.

"You… don't act too cocky, you insolent underclassman!" For some reasons, Hyuuga entered his clutch mode.

"That's right! It's ten years too early to brag about something like _that_ to us, you cheeky brat!" Izuki scowled sourly at the redhead.

"Happy people could jus DIE already!" Koganei yelled as well heatedly, while his eyes tearing up.

"Huh? Eh? Wha—?!" Kagami, who had become the sudden object of instant hatred for unknown reason, seemed to be totally perplexed. "What the hell?!"

Kuroko only sighed in defeat and Riko couldn't help laughing again manically. Mitobe seemed trying to comfort the now weeping Koganei awkwardly and Tsuchida looked another way in disinterest.

"W-what just happened?" Kagami was definitely confused as Hyuuga and Izuki glared at him _harder_ , muttering curses about 'impudent _kouhai_ ' or something along that line.

"Oh, man…" Riko chuckled, "I understand that Kuroko-kun becomes a princess, but Kagami-kun as a prince… your class did a very terrible job at casting the main character," she shook her head slightly afterwards as she was calming down from her insane laughter earlier.

"Wait a damn second! What the heck's with the discrimination!? What makes Kuroko okay as the princess but I'm _not okay_ as the prince?!" Kagami complained again boisterously, looking extremely aggravated now.

"Eh, well~," Riko drawled cutely as she scooted closer to Kuroko who didn't seem to be interested in what she was up to do as she grinned at him and thumbed his chest winking. "Kuroko-kun is adorable! His skin is flawless and soft, his body is nice and slender, and he's so polite to boot! He'll make a very beautiful and well mannered princess!" she started to recite a lot of good points of why Kuroko would be a wonderful princess dreamily.

"Was that supposed to be compliment?" Hyuuga asked, sweat dropping as the other second years also noticed that Kuroko was not exactly amused at what she said. In fact, he looked rather pale for some reasons.

"Where did coach get those detail assessment of Kuroko's complexion and body? Don't tell me she peeked on him when he took shower…" Izuki whispered, blanching.

"That's criminal!" Koganei looked scandalized.

"Compared to Kagami-kun who's obnoxious, idiotic and useless in anything beside basketball…" she nickered at this, completely ignoring the disturbing conversation in the background and Kagami's obvious protesting noise, "Kagami-kun as a prince is just ridiculous," Riko continued while starting to chuckle and laugh again.

"S-sadist…" The others started to pity Kagami who was shaking, looking extremely incensed until he couldn't _even_ give any come back to their coach's ruthless insult.

"Then, what about you, _senpai_? What will all of you do for the festival?" Kuroko suddenly tried to steer the conversation to another direction. Well, he was a misdirection specialist after all.

"Mine? Our class will make a Host Club Tour Guide!" Riko grinned and Hyuuga face-palmed while Izuki chuckled awkwardly, blushing slightly.

"Host club?" the others looked at the two with dumbfounded expression, except Kuroko who was expressionless as always.

"Yep, there are a LOT of hot guys in our class after all, and what's better than luring innocent middle school kids to come to our school except with such fine specimens like handsome, athletic young men with nice bodies, ohohoho!" Riko was laughing like an evil queen now, feeling rather worked up for doing this, because she was sure that her class would win. "Ah, and Koganei and Mitobe's class will make a Cosplay Café, right? We won't lose to you," she smirked at the two said guys who were grinning widely.

"You're on, coach! Our class will win!" Koganei said in full spirit and Mitobe nodded eagerly.

"Heeh, so our classes will compete with each other, huh? Err… for what again?" Kagami scratched his head, seeming to be lost somewhere in the conversation.

"In popularity poll, Kagami-kun. There will be popularity poll given to all the students and the visitors, and the class which got the most votes will receive a prize from school," Kuroko informed evenly.

"Heeh? That's incredible. How do you know this?" Kagami asked in wonder.

"It has been announced every day on break time by the school broadcast, Kagami-kun. By the way, our class will also make something aside performing a play. We will make a planetarium. Have you never paid any attention on anything other than basketball?" Kuroko looked at him expressionlessly, but there was an edge of irritation in his tone.

"I never thought that I'd participate in this thing…" Kagami sighed deeply at that, looking resigned.

"Oh, right, Tsuchida and Kiyoshi are in the same class this year, right? What will your class present in the festival?" Izuki asked Tsuchida then.

"Ah… probably the classic haunted house. Kiyoshi is very enthusiastic about it too," Tsuchida smiled at that.

"Huh, where's Kiyoshi then?" Hyuuga asked, looking around because the tallest brunet hadn't shown up yet despite the time. Morning practice almost started after all.

"He said he needed to go to get some properties," Tsuchida grinned.

"Ah, well. The surgery was a success, but he still needs to tone down his eagerness to play basketball insanely like last year anyway, so this festival will be a good distraction," Hyuuga scratched his head while sighing.

Then Riko blew her whistle loudly to stop the chatters. "Alright! Enough with the talk about festivals! Now we'll start the practice! Remember, even though there will be preparation for the festival, I won't let you guys slack off on our basketball practice! Now, start stretching!"

"Yes!" The others immediately shouted in response (having been trained to do so or they would get punished like hell) before they started.

"Huh? I don't see Furihata, Kawahara and Fukuda," Izuki said, informing Riko and the others.

"Ah, Fukuda-kun and Furihata-kun can't make it today because they have student council duty this morning, and Kawahara-kun has a family matter to do. Something about his relative wedding or so," Riko said, marking their absence on the clipboard on her hand.

"Oh, I see…" Izuki shrugged.

"Furihata and Fukuda are in student council?" Kagami scrunched his face, looking rather perturbed.

"Kagami-kun should really pay attention to his surroundings. They have been since first year. Furihata-kun and Fukuda-kun are their class representatives as well you know," Kuroko deadpanned at Kagami, a glint of disapproval in his eyes when he helped the taller stretch his body.

"Heeh, they are surprisingly active in school organization…" Kagami didn't seem to realize that he was reprimanded, so Kuroko pushed his back harder to make a point until Kagami whined at him to be gentler.

"You guys! Stop being so _chummy_ in front of us, damn it!" Koganei wailed again unexpectedly, surprising the two first year coup—duo.

"HUH?!" Kagami turned his head around at the senior so fast he almost snapped his neck. "W-what?! Who are—? What's that supposed to mean?!" he screeched very loudly now, his face flushing again in mortification.

Kuroko sighed deeply _again_ now, appearing pretty resigned.

"Stop flaunting your romantic relationship in front of your single upperclassmen, you idiotic duo!" Hyuuga shouted as well in total annoyance.

"… WHO is having a _romantic relationship_ with WHOM?!" After a short pause, Kagami exploded in total shock.

"YOU TWO ARE!" The seniors chorused as loudly.

"No we are NOT!" Kagami denied… hard, face still reddening (and getting redder if it was possible).

"Huh, you aren't?" The seniors looked dumbfounded now.

"Of course, not! Right, Kuroko?" Kagami glanced up at Kuroko who was still on his back since he hadn't said anything yet.

"Eh, aren't we?" Kuroko asked, still with his expressionless face and there was a pregnant silence for a brief second before—

"KUROKOOOOOOO?!"

Yes and the misunderstanding continued.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Jeez, you are terrible! What was that just now? Now our seniors even think we're dating!" Kagami grumbled in annoyance as he bit his extra long bread at lunch.

"They have already thought about that since the shadow-light think came up," Kuroko replied while shipping his boxed vanilla milk from the white straw.

"Then it's your fault since the beginning!" Kagami shouted, slamming the table hard with his free hand after he chew at the bread three times roughly and swallowed it all with a single gulp. It was kind of magical how he could eat that fast without getting choked.

Kuroko blinked once and stared at Kagami expressionlessly for a moment before saying, "Forgive me. I just realized that."

"You just—?!" Kagami twitched and was ready to yell again when something knocked the back of his head! "OW! What the fu—!"

"If you swear at me, Kagami-kun, I'm going to make the rest of your high school life miserable," Sasaki appeared and smirked at him threateningly.

"Gaaah! What do you want, _Iinchou (2)_? Can you not pester me in my precious break time?" Kagami nursed his abused head, but he tried to tone down his foul language as he spoke. He really didn't want Sasaki to act out on her threats because she would, just to make him squirm like a worm under her shoes.

"Please don't bully Kuroko-kun, Kagami-kun. He's our precious Doll Princess, you know," Sasaki huffed.

Kuroko made an almost choking sound on his drink at that. "Um… can you please not call me like—,"

But, since Kuroko was ignored as always because his voice was too soft and his presence was fading, now it was Kagami's time to retaliate, "Then is it okay to bully the prince? You are bullying me too, you know!"

Kuroko could only give the two bickering teens a long sigh and continue his lunch break quietly while waiting for the argument to tone down.

"Anyway," Sasaki then put two copies of books on the table. "The script is done. Study this and memorize the lines while the girls are preparing the costumes and properties. Ah, there will be time to measure your sizes as well later after school. Don't run away. Now, please enjoy your couple time together, ohohohohoho!" Then Sasaki twirled away like a ridiculous dancer.

"Sheesh, what the hell is her problem…?" Kagami grunted and grumbled as he stared at the script with bullets of sweat on his face. He was still staring at the source of his doom before her last words clicked in his mind.

"We aren't a couple!" Kagami shouted that so loudly in chagrin so suddenly such that the other classmates turned to face him with odd ridiculous expression. Kuroko just gave out another long suffering sigh, but he didn't say anything about it.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"… _W-we… we will be together… until my time ends…_ " Kagami's eyebrow twiched, face very red as he recited the dialog on his script, his voice shaking uncontrollably while Kuroko was silently reading his own script beside him.

" _For… for you and I are destined to be…_ AAAARGH!" Kagami threw his script away in total frustration while his face felt like scorching. "Aaaa! There's no way I can say such lines without getting burnt! It's so embarrassing! It's _too_ embarrassing!" he was complaining now.

Hell, who wouldn't be? The lines were so cheesy and totally corny and there was just no way in hell that people could say such lines in reality.

"Kagami-kun, it is a _drama_ ," as if Kuroko could read Kagami's mind, he commented while closing his script.

Kagami threw a heated glare at Kuroko. "You are a doll! You don't have that many of dialogs and acts despite being the leading role! How is that fair?!" he pointed at the bluenet accusingly now, gritting his teeth.

"It is not like I decided that. There is no use complaining to me. Moreover, I have to memorize your lines too to help you," Kuroko deadpanned at Kagami, voice toneless as usual, but his dull sky blue eyes glinted slightly in annoyance.

Kagami groaned and covered his temple, totally miserable. "I'm sooo going to kill _Iinchou_ and the rest of the girls in our class!" he muttered in aggravation afterwards.

Kuroko let out a soft sigh. "It is alright, Kagami-kun. Just study the line one by one and follow the instruction. You can do it," Kuroko encouraged. Well, he didn't sound so thrilled, but his words made Kagami's distressed heart feel rather at ease.

"I'll be totally counting on you for this," Kagami admitted and suddenly felt rather bad as well. "You will help, right?" He knew he sounded pathetically desperate, but he just couldn't help it. Memorizing 'things that had to be memorized' really wasn't his strong point after all.

"Of course, I am Kagami-kun's shadow, remember?" Kuroko showed Kagami a small selfless smile and Kagami couldn't help his heart stirring at the sincerity. It was as if he also said that he would always support Kagami no matter what.

"AS usual, you can spout such embarrassing lines without breaking a sweat," Kagami looked another way, his face getting warm again as a bead of sweat rolled down his cheek. "They should have picked you as the prince," he grumbled afterwards.

…

…

"Kagami-kun wants to play the princess?" Kuroko asked suddenly, rather astonished, his eyes looking suspiciously shiny.

Kagami squeaked in horror at that. "NO, you idiot! How come 'you should become a prince' translates into 'I want to become a princess'?!" Really, Kagami didn't understand how Kuroko's mind works.

"Eh, is it not?" Kuroko looked rather disappointed.

"You bastard…! You just imagined something _nasty_ in that pretty little head of yours, didn't you…?!" Kagami glared as he knuckled Kuroko's head viciously.

"Ow, ow, ow. That hurts, Kagami-kun," Kuroko complained evenly.

"You didn't look hurting at all!" Kagami was really irked at how good Kuroko maintained his expressionless state. "How come you don't show anything in your face, damn it!?"

"Well… maybe that's why they picked me as the doll," Kuroko murmured, his neck still trapped in Kagami's arm even though Kagami didn't knuckle his head anymore, but putting his warm big palm on top of Kuroko's head.

"Doll, huh…?" Kagami let out a long suffering sigh, dreading slightly as he stared ominously at the offending script on Kuroko's hand. He still didn't retrieve his own after he threw it away earlier. "How come a doll can develop a feeling for a human, really? They pick quite a bizarre theme," he commented gruffly.

…

…

" _Even though you don't realize my presence here, I will always be by your side._ " Kuroko suddenly said and Kagami widened his eyes at that.

"M-moron! I notice you just fine!" Kagami was rather flustered.

Kuroko glanced at Kagami with an amused glint in his eyes. "It is one of my dialogs, Kagami-kun," he said and Kagami's face blew up at that.

"You—!" Kagami was very embarrassed. He thought Kuroko had said that for real! Sheesh!

"I apologize. But… it is something that can be said even in real life, Kagami-kun," Kuroko said, reaching his hand and placed it comfortably on Kagami's arm that was still entrapping his neck.

Kagami flushed even darker at that and he didn't know how to respond to such embarrassing and yet sweet words. Seriously, there was definitely something wrong with Kuroko's head for being able to say those things so eloquently.

"You are unbelievable, damn it," Kagami resorted to just hide his face by drowning it on Kuroko' soft blue locks.

Kagami was sure Kuroko was laughing at him inwardly at that moment, but he didn't want to dwell too much on it because Kuroko kept his calm demeanor even in that situation.

A few minutes of silence later, Kuroko's cell-phone suddenly vibrated. Kagami noticed because Kuroko wiggled around to fish the device out of his pants pocket before opening the lid and looking into the screen.

Kagami couldn't help looking at it as well over Kuroko's head.

" _Tetsu-kun! Heard from Aida-san that you'd perform at a play in your school festival! Will surely come to watch! Ah, and I informed the others as well that Tetsu-kun will play as a princess!"_

"Oh no," was Kuroko's first _flat_ reaction before simultaneously, his phone vibrated again five times in a row.

"Whoa. What was that?" Kagami raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Kuroko looked disgruntled. "Coach has a big mouth," he looked extremely uncomfortable now and that was the most intense expression Kagami had ever seen in Kuroko's face after at that time when he was pissed off in the match against Kirisaki Daichi.

Kagami actually sweated slightly. Did Kuroko just mutter a quiet cuss at their devilish coach?

"What's wrong?" Kagami took a slight distance away from Kuroko who increasingly emanated dangerous aura around him as he read through some messages he just received.

"All the GoM members will come to our festival…" Kuroko said slowly and Kagami could only widen his eyes, totally horrified, at that.

"EEEEKH!?"

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Meanwhile… The GoM members were…

_**Aomine Daiki** _

_Tetsu in a dress, Tetsu in a dress, Tetsu in a dress…—_ chanted dazedly.

_**Kise Ryouta** _

_Kuroko-chi as princess! Must be very beautiful! Aaah! Can't wait to see it for real!_ —grinned, totally excited.

_**Midorima Shintarou** _

_I-it's not like I'm interested in seeing Kuroko in a fairy tale like outfit or anything. It's just for reference…_ —pushed up glasses, tsundere mode on.

_**Murasakibara Atsushi** _

_Kuro-chin will dress up like a woman… It must be sweet… I wonder if he will taste sweet as well in it…—_ licked his lips.

_**Akashi Seijuurou** _

_...If Tetsuya will become a princess… who is the insolent prince then?—_ cut something mercilessly.

_**GoM at the same time…** _

_Definitely have to check it out!—_ totally determined.

**#**

Thus, at Seirin High, Kagami Taiga couldn't help shivering from the impending doom those weirdoes of Miracles Rainbow would surely bring upon him (and maybe Kuroko too) or Seirin High in general….

**End of Chapter 2**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Additional Notes:**

1) _Ouji_ : prince

2) _Iinchou_ : class leader, class president

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you think of the second chapter? Interesting enough? Funny enough? I hope (very much) so *lol* I actually had to stop several times while typing this to crack imagining the scene *looool* I hope I portray the humors okay enough to pass down the message *grins*. Will be patiently waiting for your feedback *bows*


	3. The Promotion and The Hunch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which they try the costumes and their classmates are all fujoshi (and maybe fudanshi).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Disclaimer and Warning: _See chapter 1_**  
>  **A/N:** Err… because today is KuroKaga/KagaKuro Day (10/11), I decided to update this story… (OMG! I haven't even thought a single word to update Signal! Aaaaaah! What am I doing?!). Anyway, thank you very much for the reviews, faves and alert everyone! They ate totally AWESOME and I reaaaally appreciate them! Now, please ENJOY this new chapter, my lovely readers!

  
**Chapter 3:** _**The Promotion and The Hunch** _  


* * *

Kagami was grumbling obscenities in low tone when he was walking down the corridor of his school building towards the drama club room.

It was just after the end of a lesson that afternoon. Kagami and Kuroko had to go to the basketball practice in… what, twenty minutes? But the damn president of the drama club a.k.a. their class leader, Sasaki, together with Ayasaki and her other minions, had kidnapped Kuroko when Kagami went to the rest room.

The other classmates (the boys) informed him that Kagami and Kuroko had to do a fitting session sooner than the rest because their costumes were the hardest to make, and by some miracle, the girls seem to finish them quite remarkably fast, but there were still adjustments to make and attributes to add. That's why both Kagami and Kuroko had to help by _wearing_ them.

 _Damn those girls! Now I have to go there as well_ —Kagami thought, muttering more curses to his fate and especially to Kuroko for getting caught in the first place.

No. It wasn't like Kagami tried to run away or anything, but they would surely get yelled at by Coach Aida if they were late. He just didn't want his training portion to be doubled, or worse… tripled. Kagami groaned literally at the scary mental image. The foreboding feeling that he would get tortured by their evil coach was too much to bear.

Luckily, Kagami didn't get to imagine the worst when his attention was distracted by the board sign hanging above the door to a certain room down the corner of the hall. Apparently he had arrived at his destination, a.k.a. _drama club room_ , when he wasn't looking.

"So this is the place," Kagami let out a long sigh. Somehow, he really didn't want to go inside. He hardened his heart, though. "Just get over with it," he muttered before he reached his hand out to grab the door handle and then slid it open while greeting "Excuse me!"

Kagami blinked when he was faced by an empty room. "Huh? There's no one…"

But then he heard something, a low groan from somewhere inside the room. Kagami scrunched his face oddly as he turned towards the direction from where the sound came. "Excuse me!" he called again as he saw another door at the room corner.

There was no reply, but Kagami did hear some rustling sounds from the inside and then…

" _Ngh… impossible… too tight…"_

Kagami blinked twice. Just now… was Kuroko's voice…?

"… _A-ah…! P-please stop…! Hurts…!"_

For some unfathomable reason, Kagami's face heated hearing those little moans and pleas… and suddenly his mind took a vacation on an R-rated island where Kuroko's inappropriate images popped up one by one like an actor starring in adult videos.

" _Ow! Ah, please… take it o—!"_

"GAAAH! Wait a damn second! What the hell are you guys doing to Kuroko?!" Of course Kagami couldn't take it anymore and forcefully opened the thin wooden door with a bang, his face already steaming in mortification and horror because he thought that Kuroko was…!

_Kuroko is…!?_

But what Kagami saw inside the small _silent_ room after he forcefully opened the door with such vigor was the girls… trying to fit Kuroko's body ( _still half clothed, thank GOD! Only the top was off, but still…_ ) inside a very small corset.

Kuroko's face was slightly flushed, expression looking like he was in pain and dear god, he looked _erotic_ (Kagami gave his head a mental kick for that thought), and the girls were looking at Kagami as if he was an alien from Mars for a few seconds before—

"Kyaaaah! Kagami-kun, you PERVERT!"

" _HENTAI!" (1)_

" _SUKEBE!" (2)_

" _KAPPA!" (3)_

Those feminine creatures started to scream hysterically while throwing stuffs at Kagami who squeaked in shock noticing _those things_ flying toward his head and face actually include sharp items like scissors, knitting utensils and needles.

Well, they were preparing a costume, so it was normal to have those kinds of things, but still, throwing such dangerous objects at people's head was quite brutal, especially when Kagami's attention was still quite distracted by Kuroko's _miserable_ (sexy) look.

_And did they just call me 'kappa'? I'm not even green like Mido—_

"WHOAAA!" Kagami cut his inner monolog in favor to screech and jump back, rather freaking out, in total alert, dodging those objects while getting the hell out of the small room before those girls could murder him with sewing tools.

"Sheesh! Wait for your turn patiently, Bakagami-kun!" Ayasaki threw Kagami a dirty look. "Pervert!"

"What the—hold on a damn second! How am I the _pervert_ when you girls are the ones who force to dress a boy with a girl's clothes, damn it?!" Kagami retaliated, slightly enraged and still _totally_ very embarrassed. His face still felt extremely hot from the misunderstanding and the aftermath of his idiotic imagination and thought earlier.

"Tsk. I know you want to see Kuroko-kun changing, but seriously… keep your head out of the gutter. We don't exactly need to see your _romantic_ life in our drama business, you depraved idiot," Ayasaki huffed before slamming the door shut once again on his face with Kuroko looking at Kagami helplessly for the last time.

…

It was ten seconds after the remark that it clicked in Kagami's head what she implied just now. "WHOSE ROMANTIC LIFE?!" he shouted, his face officially flaming now, especially when indeed his mind had taken a peek at the _gutter_ just a few minutes ago. "We are NOT like that, damn it! Quit assuming thing that's not true!"

Kagami continued yelling and banging the door in protest from outside the room until the door was opened once again, revealing a very smug looking Ayasaki, a giggling Sasaki and a bunch of other girls who seemed very satisfied for some reasons.

Kagami actually stepped back several times, just to make sure that they didn't intend to bodily harm him. "W-what did you do to Kuro-…? What happens now?" he asked warily, feeling the blood draining slightly from his face at the dangerous looks those girls gave him.

"Ohohoho, you can kneel and worship us now. We have created such magnificent specimen for our drama play!" Sasaki laughed like a mad queen (scientist?) while pointing at Kagami.

"Specimen?" Kagami screwed his expression, even more aghast, thinking that those witches had turned Kuroko into something dreadful.

"Behold our masterpiece! Doll Princess in the flesh!" Sasaki batted her eyelashes and presented something that was still _vaguely_ inside the room to Kagami who was surely making a bewildered look because damn it, he couldn't stomach the view so quickly when _(s)he_ finally showed up.

Contradicting his dreading idea, standing in front of him was a girl version of Kuroko Tetsuya, still with his dull (and more lifeless if he knew better) eyes, expressionless face and a very faint life-aura, seriously. But there was something… something in him that caught Kagami's eyes, holding his gaze and attention, even though Kuroko was practically a ghost at this point.

There was a hint of makeup on Kuroko's feminine face. Light blue sparkling eyeliner and dark blue mascara to enhance the color of Kuroko's pale blue eyes, a hint of blush-powder on his cheeks creating an impression of healthy flawless skin, and his hair….

They had done something to Kuroko's hair as well because it were now longer, straight, reaching his back and the front part framed his delicate, small face perfectly. A shiny hair ornament, which looked like pearl crown surrounded by sapphire colored stones, was perched on his head beautifully.

Moreover, the dress… It was totally extravagant.

It was somewhat a complicated looking dress because Kagami didn't even know how to describe it. It was a light blue-white long dress with long sleeves. Well, Kuroko's small shoulders were bare save for the puffed part on his upper arms. There was a big dark blue ribbon tied on the waist part. The skirt part was also puffed and the clothes were sparkling for some reason. Then there was aquamarine colored stone on the chest part, surrounded by another layer of dark blue ribbon that gave impression that Kuroko actually had breasts.

Kagami was dizzy because all his blood rushed to his face and head (and maybe a certain region that he didn't want to mention). His stomach suddenly did that strange flip-flop thing, making him very nervous. He barely recognized the person dressed as a princess in front of him as Kuroko despite the striking resemblance of _his color_.

"Fufufu, you are so amazed that you are speechless, Kagami-kun?" Sasaki asked while laughing mirthfully, her eyes glinting in satisfaction.

Kagami ignored her words easily because Kuroko's look in a dress was too distracting even though he was sure that the blue haired gir—boy was trying his best to fade away like usual. Kagami wasn't sure though, if the blush on Kuroko's cheek was caused by the makeup or because he really was blushing.

"K-Kuro...ko?" Now Kagami's throat felt dry, his stuttering voice sounding hoarse as he was gaping and Kuroko visibly flinched as he looked at another way, seemingly shy and Kagami's mind couldn't help screaming inside his head that Kuroko was so fucking adorable at that moment, much to his horror.

Kuroko looked _stunningly beautiful_ in a dress.

Kagami mentally asked himself if he went nuts. Kuroko was a guy! There was no way a guy could be so pretty in a dress! Kagami must have been delusional. No, his brain wasn't working properly!

"Please do not make fun of me," was Kuroko's faint words as he spoke much quietly so the girls who was fawning and cheering 'BANZAI' loudly around them, celebrating their awesome work, didn't hear him.

Oh, but Kagami heard him, alright. He actually went into spontaneous combustion in reaction. Don't even think about making fun, Kagami couldn't even speak as he faced a very attractive Kuroko in girls' clothes. This wasn't right. This was totally so _NOT right._ But still, Kagami couldn't help feeling strange, his heart picking up pace, his brain almost melting unable to handle the _heat_ from the view that he had to shut it down completely.

"Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asked slowly, looking somewhat rather concerned because Kagami still couldn't say anything.

"C-…" Kagami, finally finding his voice again, tried to say something.

"Eh?" Kuroko tilted his face up, looking at Kagami's face directly.

"Cu—!" Kagami was still trying.

"…" Kuroko's pale blue eyes were boring into Kagami's crimson ones.

"Cute…!" Kagami finally sputtered it out and had to slap his mouth shut right after that to hide part of his face which must have been very red because it felt scorching.

 _What is this? What the hell is THIS?!—_ Kagami didn't know how to handle the surge of feeling he didn't recognize inside him. He had never felt something like this before when he saw someone.

Kuroko seemed to be stunned when he heard Kagami's words, and dear God. Please tell him that Kagami saw it wrong because the smaller, slenderer boy in front of him seemed to blush after that. His face turned slightly pink and he averted his gaze away from Kagami, looking at _anywhere_ but him.

"Aww, aren't they adorably romantic?" Ayasaki's teasing voice broke the moment and Kagami was startled back from the enchanted moment to reality once again and when he realized that the girls were watching them with excited expression, he squeaked in mortification.

"No, no, no! You've got it wrong! We aren't…! It isn't like that!" Kagami immediately denied hard, horrified, that once again people conjured up something untrue about his relationship with Kuroko.

"Save the denial, Kagami-kun. Now it's your turn to try the Prince outfit," Sasaki giggled while clicking her fingers.

Instantly the girls surrounded Kagami and he was forcefully dragged to the changing room while he was paling and wailing "Noooooooo!"

Kuroko sighed deeply as the door was slammed shut once again and this time, Kagami's terrorized howl echoed throughout the halls, surprising the passerby that walked in front of and around the club room.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Uh… this is disaster…" Kagami, now completely looking prince-like with the white buttoned up royal blazer with golden chains on the chest part and white gloves plus a golden crown on his head, slumped weakly on the chair while Kuroko, still in his 'Doll Princess' outfit, was seated on his lap.

"Kyaaaah! They look totally catching and awesome!"

"Like the moon and the sun, so complementing each other~!"

"Beautiful artwork! Look this way, please~!"

"Aww~!"

The girls swooned while photographing them with the digital cameras and the camera they had borrowed from photography club. They said since it was a waste to just remove all the costumes after the hassle of putting them on (because they kept struggling to break free from their clutch), it was better to take some pictures to make a promotion flyer.

"I can't believe I put up with this…" Kagami whined again, looking dejected.

"Kagami-kun… please shut up," Kuroko was not in better mood. After all, he felt squishy and itchy. The material of his dress wasn't exactly comfortable on his skin and he was actually quite in pain because of the corset. It felt like his inside was squeezed. "My internal organs are being crushed, you know," he continued while looking at Kagami in irritation even though he couldn't exactly express it with his face, his tone said it all.

Kagami paled slightly. "Sorry…" the red head actually apologized and Kuroko heaved a long suffering sigh.

"I do not find this amusing as well," Kuroko added afterwards, completely ignoring the flashes, the clicking sound from the cameras and the giggling and snickering and squealing of the girls around them.

"You alright, though, right?" Kagami asked now, looking somewhat concerned.

"Well, if I have to dress up like this for the entire play, I have to at least get used to wearing this costume…" Kuroko resisted the urge to groan pitifully at the thought of wearing that very tight painful corset. How the girls could wear it in daily basis was beyond him. "I will manage… somehow."

"You don't have to actually agree with this arrangement, you know," Kagami said again. "We can always ditch this thing," he continued, seeming to be very intent to do just that.

"…" Kuroko glanced away, completely silent. He hated to admit it, but this was actually the very first time he was picked for something important for a school event. Of course, usually he would be content being a supportive staffs from behind the scene, but to actually be appointed for a leading role was a BIG deal for someone like Kuroko who was used to be ignored. After all, Kuroko had a very faint presence, and if it weren't for the fact that he was Kagami's shadow, he was sure the other students wouldn't even notice him.

That's why… even though Kuroko had to endure the humiliation of wearing a girl's clothes, the _literal_ pain of wearing a _corset_ (for god's sake) and a complicated dress, he actually wanted to do this… well, there was 'the prize' factor as well, but it didn't change the fact that the class relied on him and Kagami to win.

"…I actually do not mind that much," Kuroko confessed, despite the embarrassment, but he didn't show it much because he didn't look at Kagami as he said that.

Kagami made a face as if Kuroko was a lunatic. "Seriously?" he asked in disbelief.

Kuroko was slightly irked at that. "Well… Kagami-kun did say that I was _cute_ , so I do not look hideous in this thing," he said flatly in order to retort.

Kagami visibly jumped and sputtered with red face as he reacted to that. "W-what? T-that's not…! I meant, I… ugh…!" he stuttered, completely embarrassed and looking adorable as he tried to deny it.

"Hmm… so was that actually a lie?" Kuroko asked, glancing at Kagami while raising eyebrows. "Do I look bad in this dress?"

Kagami bit his lower lip and averted his eyes from Kuroko, face still flushing and looking very troubled. "Of course not…. You do look like a girl in that outfit. No one in their right mind will think you are a guy when you look like this," he muttered lowly, still stubbornly not looking at Kuroko.

Kuroko blinked once before huffing out a small laugh. "I am torn. Should I take that as a compliment or as an insult?" Really, he shouldn't be feeling happy that Kagami just implied that he could actually pass as a girl, but seeing the way Kagami say it made him want to tease Kagami even more because he was seriously cute when he was so embarrassed like that.

Kagami made a squawking noise at that. "M-moron! It's obviously a compliment!" he protested.

Kuroko just shook his head at Kagami's antics and leaned his face more closely to the instantly frozen Kagami. "I know," he whispered, amused.

Kagami blushed again, seeming to resist the urge to yell curses at Kuroko before coughing awkwardly and decided to settle with sighing, looking at his eyes. "Tease," he retorted lowly.

"Oh my GOD! That POSE!" Sasaki suddenly screeched, surprising both Kuroko and Kagami who immediately turned to face her, having just realized that the girls were still there.

"Aaaah! That pose is amazing! It's decided! We will use that pose as the promotion picture!" Ayasaki seconded in total excitement as well.

…

…

 _What pose?_ —was in Kuroko's (and must as well have been in Kagami's) dreading mind because they paled at the sudden commotion among the girls who screamed 'KYAAAAA!' so hysterically and enthusiastically.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Several days later at a basketball practice…

" _Receive my love,"_ Kuroko said before passing the orange ball at Kagami.

" _And I shall make you the only one!"_ Kagami dunked the basketball in the ring before landing gracefully on the ground.

 _Why are they exchanging love words during practice?_ —the others thought at the peculiar scene in front of them, sweat dropping, some even blushing in perplexity.

"What the hell are you guys doing?!" Hyuuga roared, completely embarrassed at the cheesiness of his juniors.

"Sheesh! Stop the PDA right now, damn it!" Izuki protested as well.

"What?!" Kagami turned to face the others in horror. "We are not PDA-ing!" he protested.

"Kagami-kun, that is _not_ a word," Kuroko reminded the red head evenly.

"Shut up! Why don't you say something to them to stop thinking that we are an item?!" Kagami protested at Kuroko, his face the same color as his hair now.

"It is pointless. People want to think what they want to think," Kuroko replied flatly, seeming to be disinterested.

"Aaaaargh!" Kagami scratched his head curtly, looking very frustrated.

"Their relationship is as smooth as ever, neh?" Kiyoshi laughed heartedly at that.

"We don't have _that kind_ of relationship, damn it!" Kagami still stubbornly denied.

"Yet you said such cheesy words to each other moments ago," Koganei deadpanned at Kagami.

"We were practicing lines!" Kagami yelled even louder, flushing even redder if it was possible.

The deafening blow of whistle from Riko instantly stopped the rising arguments on the court. "You guys…" Riko sent a very evil glare to the boys on the court and they instantly paled at her very scary smile. "Doubled training portion," she smirked.

"NOOO! I still have LINES to practice!" Kagami protested in total horror.

"Kagami-kun," Kuroko seemed to try to stop the red head from aggravating their coach more, but it was too late because Riko's wrathful gaze was focused on the ace now.

"Like I care. Tripled for Kagami," Riko made a cut-throat gesture and Kagami was forced to shut up, blanching slightly despite looking like almost exploding in a string of complaints.

Nobody dared to say anything after that. Kuroko just sighed deeply, looking resigned.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"I'm going to die…!" Kagami whined, laying while panting helplessly, staring deliriously at the ceiling just after he finished his training program in the evening.

Kuroko offered the taller male a cooled towel and a bottle of mineral water. "Coach Aida was brutal," he commented evenly, looking at Kagami with a tinge of sympathy in his pale eyes.

"Haaah… there's no way I can practice lines after this… Worse, I think I already forgot the ones I had memorized as well…" Kagami closed his eyes as he accepted the drink and the towel with one trembling hand. He must have been very tired because his grip faltered and the bottle almost dropped.

Kuroko immediately caught it for him. "Take it easy, Kagami-kun."

"Sorry…" Kagami groaned again. His muscles must have been aching right then.

Kuroko took an initiative to help Kagami wipe the sweat with his own towel. Kagami raised an eyebrow at him, looking confused. "Kagami-kun is working hard. I am quite impressed," he said and Kagami snorted slightly, looking surprised.

"What's with the sudden compliment?" Kagami looked almost laughing.

"Well, I thought you would not care about the play, but you actually _tried_ to memorize the lines," Kuroko said and smiled slightly. "It surprised me when you asked me to practice lines with you today," he continued, feeling somewhat happy.

"Ah? Well… it's our class hard work. As much as I don't want to care, looking at the girls do their best in preparing everything… and everyone who practices hard on their part… the least I can do to help is to actually do my part properly, you know. I don't want their effort to be wasted on me, so…" Kagami trailed and he looked very thoughtful as he said all of that and it always surprised Kuroko how considerate Kagami was actually despite his wild and boorish appearance.

Kuroko couldn't help smiling pleasantly at that and Kagami noticed because he suddenly went quiet and his face colored slightly. "W-what's with that expression, just now? Are you laughing at me?" he asked, looking slightly indignant.

Well, he seemed to mistake what Kuroko was thinking then, so Kuroko just kept smiling. "Kagami-kun is very kind. I am happy to be able to _play_ with you," he said gently, very content and joyful and Kagami blushed even harder at his words.

"Ah, jeez! Quit saying such embarrassing things so casually like that!" Now Kagami shouted indelicately, but he looked very adorable with his flushing face, looking half mad, but mostly embarrassed.

Somehow, at that moment, Kuroko felt that he wouldn't mind if the rumor about them being _together_ was true.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"The flyer is done!" Sasaki sang and twirled happily and elegantly in front of the class during lunch period the next day and everyone halted their activities to look at her as if she were alien from Pluto and Pluto wasn't even a planet anymore. Well, she behaved strangely most of the time, so some already got used to it, but it was still _odd_ seeing her like that.

"Behold, class! Our promotion flyer for our 'Doll Princess' play!" Ayasaki set up an A2 size poster on the blackboard and rolled it open before slamming her hand on the middle of the poster to set it straight.

Kagami instantly burst out his cola when he saw the picture on the poster.

Kuroko dropped his sandwich back to his lunch box, face blanching despite his already pale complexion.

While the others' reactions were…

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" the girls literally screamed in excitement and joy.

"Seriously?!" the guys gaped, some in shock, some in awe, some in astonishment, some in mortification, some… well, there were too many reactions to mention.

"Oh my GOD! Is that really Kuroko?!"

"Holly shi—! He looks really like a girl!"

"What the—! Kagami looks very—!"

"Whoaaah! So AWESOME!"

"T-that… you guys…?" All classmates then turned to look at Kagami who was flushing so hard which put the color of his hair to shame while gawking speechlessly like a fish out of water, eyes widening like saucers seeing the poster, and Kuroko who discreetly covered his maybe _slightly_ blushing face while seeming to try to fade away from the prying eyes, looking very-very embarrassed.

"As expected from the most compatible pair, huh?"

The girls totally swooned blissfully while the boys looked very awkward, but somehow supportive and Kagami _plus_ Kuroko wanted to be swallowed by the ground for actually seeing that they looked like they were about to kiss in the poster, Kuroko as a Doll Princess and Kagami as The Prince.

Kagami still hadn't found his voice to protest and retort or even sputter, while Kuroko decided he could just die now.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Meanwhile, in certain place, Momoi Satsuki got another MMS from Aida Riko.

" _Here's the promotion flyer for Kuroko-kun's class play,"—Aida Riko._

Momoi brightened joyfully before she opened the picture and immediately squeaked in red face at what she saw. "T-T-T-Tetsu-kun… so PRETTY!" She squealed then, completely disregarding the 'context' of the picture before she forwarded it to all the GoM members, still squealing non-stop that passerby had to turn to look at her oddly.

"Ah! This is sooo amazing! Tetsu-kun looks very beautiful~... Nn?" Momoi giggled animatedly before noticing that Kagami was also in the picture and looking at the picture composition, she immediately realized the biggest mistake she had done. "Ah," she paled slightly. She should have edited the picture first before sending it to the others….

…

"I'm sorry, Kagamin," Momoi looked another way, silently prying that the others would be too focused on Kuroko to notice Kagami in the picture.

#

As for the other GoM members that received the MMS…

 **Aomine Daiki—** sputtered before cracking his cell phone in his grip, totally enraged at the suggestive position between Kuroko and Kagami. "Unforgivable! That Bakagamiiii!"

 **Kise Ryouta—** immediately squeaked before dropping his phone and wailing, "Kurokochiiiiiii! Get away from that beast! Waaaaah!"

 **Midorima Shintarou—** broke his glasses the moment he saw the picture. "I'll curse that red headed buffoon!" He took a straw doll somewhere from his drawer and wrote Kagami's name on it.

 **Murasakibara Atsushi** —was trying to eat his cell-phone to destroy the image of a very delicious looking Kuroko in a fluffy dress almost being kissed by Kagami from his mind.

 **Akashi Seijuurou—** immediately stabbed the cell phone screen with his scissors, "How dare he...!" he hissed, his evil smirk turning murderous as he began to plot to destroy Kagami Taiga's life.

Thus by some miracle of the Generation of Miracle, those Miracle Rainbows concluded in unison in their mind that _"THAT PLAY CANNOT HAPPEN AT ALL COST!"_

#

In his home, Kagami sneezed before shuddering at the feel of sudden chill running down his spine. "Uh… what was that, just now?"

**End of Chapter 3**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Additional Notes:  
**

_**1)Hentai:**_ pervert

 _ **2)Sukebe:**_ degenerate

 _ **3)Kappa:**_ a kind of water demon (youkai)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um… somehow, this chapter didn't turn out like I wanted to. I got extremely distracted when I was making Kaga/Kuro in this chapter and got carried away with the description that GoM could only appear at the end… T_T B-but… it's a KuroKaga day, so… and this is a KagaKuro story originally that…  
> Uhm, I'll speed up the plot starting next chapter. I promise. Anyway, what do you think? *grins* Is it still funny enough? I HOPE so because I want to stick to the humorous part of their life *lol* And somehow making Kagami a victim of GoM's wrath is very FUNNY *dies laughing* Oh, I can't wait to write what they'll do to sabotage the play! XDD  
> HAPPY KUROKAGA DAY!


	4. The Rehearsal and the Competition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the new GoM partners get their fair share or shock and confusion, while the rival shows up for Seirin 2-B class...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Disclaimer and Warning: See chapter 1!**  
>  **A/N:** Uh… sorry for the very long wait I have to put you guys through… and, as per some people request, I drew that [promotion flyer for Doll Princess in chapter 3](http://archiveofourown.org/works/520480/chapters/997523). If you haven't seen it, please go back a chapter and see *lol* Or, you can visit my journal and deviant art.
> 
> Now, please do and ENJOY this chapter! XD

  
**Chapter 4:** _**The Rehearsal and the Competition** _   


* * *

One morning, three days before the big day of the Seirin Spring Fest…

A loud knock on Kasamatsu Yukio's apartment door woke the Tokyo University freshman in a start. "W-wha—?" he looked around, sight still unfocused and slightly disoriented because of having just woken up so abruptly.

"… _-pai!"_

Kasamatsu furrowed his eyebrows, shaking his head slightly to clear his cloudy mind and sharpen his vision when he thought that he had vaguely heard someone's voice.

" _Senpai!"_

There, _again_. Now Kasamatsu was sure that really heard it. Someone was indeed calling him.

" _Kasamatsu-senpai! Please open the door!"_

That high childish voice with whiny tone… Kasamatsu twitched slightly because he could recognize it _anywhere._ Heck, he couldn't start to forget even if he really wanted to. After all, that annoying crying voice belonged to the most infuriating _kouhai_ he had ever had in history, Kise _fucking_ Ryouta.

Kasamatsu couldn't help remembering how he had to deal with the blond model bawling in the night of his graduation party. Seriously, did Kise still want to bother him despite Kasamatsu no longer in Kaijou?

" _Senpai! Please! This is an emergency!"_

A vein of irritation popped on Kasamatsu's head at this point, despite trying to tune out Kise's shrill tone, but the repetitive knocking sound on his door was getting louder and insistent by the second and he was kind of worried that his neighbors would claim a complaint against him for disturbing their beauty sleep so early in the morning ( _it's 6 o'clock, for God's sake!)_ so he could only growl before starting to get up from his warm comfortable bed to step on the hard, cold morning floor.

Kasamatsu shuddered slightly at the freezing contact as he gingerly walked out of his bedroom to the front door while cursing obscenities to Kise, swearing he would kick his butt the moment he opened the door.

" _Yukio-senpaaaai!"_

Kasamatsu's last patience snapped when Kise used his first name. Damn him. "Cut it out, Kise!" he yelled loudly as he opened his door with bang, glaring daggers at the youngerboy who blinked once, looking surprised, in front of him. "The hell are you doing on my doorstep in a blind morning, you dumbass!? I'm not even in Kaijou anymore and you're still disturbing my peace!"

"Se-…senpaaaaai!" Kise immediately shouted dramatically, surging forward to the unsuspecting Kasamatsu who could only yelp in shock as he was suddenly knocked down, butt first connecting hard to the floor with Kise hugging his body tightly as if his life depended on it.

"Oof—! What the fu—Kise!?" Kasamatsu yelled in panic, hitting the blonds' head and kicking up to get the taller boy off of his body, seriously thinking that he had been attacked.

"Waaah! Senpaaai! Please, please, PLEASE accompany me to Kuroko-chi's school this Friday!" Kise cried, totally ignoring Kasamatsu's struggle, before starting to wail like five year old.

"What?!" Kasamatsu was very confused, indignant and appalled at the sudden ridiculous request. Well, at least he wasn't attacked….

"But senpai! Kagami-chi will violate Kuroko-chi if he's dressed like a girl in front of that beast! I have to stop the play!" Kise seemed to be very frantic and panicked and – _uh-oh–_ people started to open their doors to see what the commotion was.

"Shit!" Kasamatsu of course noticed the odd look his neighbors gave them and hit Kise's stupid head once more for a good measure before shouting in undertone, "Moron! Stop being so loud, asshole! Come inside first!" then he forced Kise to stand up and kicked him into the apartment before Kasamatsu apologized for the disturbance to his neighbors quickly. He immediately closed his apartment door afterwards.

"S-senpai…" Kise sniffled and whimpered then while Kasamatsu turned to face him with a death glare, aggravated beyond belief.

"In _seiza (1)_ , now!" Oh, Kasamatsu would punish this idiotic guy, seriously. He really needed to teach an appropriate social conduct to his _kouhai_ , so he could learn how to act like an adult for once.

"E-eh?" Kise visibly paled when Kasamatsu cracked his knuckles.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Ryou… you will escort me to Seirin at Friday," Aomine suddenly said, out of blue, to Sakurai who a moment ago had been enjoying his lunch.

"Eh?" Sakurai halted mid putting another _tamagoyaki_ (2) in his mouth with his chopsticks and slowly peered upward at Aomine who looked very pissed off for some reasons since this morning. "Uh… I-I'm sorry, but why?" He asked, sweating slightly, feeling a bad omen.

"There's a red haired bastard I need to kill," Aomine growled, his mood visibly darkening.

"Hiii! I-I-I'm sorry! Please forgive me! B-but killing people is a crime!" Sakurai couldn't help crying, very scared and frightened that Aomine seemed very serious with his words.

"Dai-chan!" Momoi suddenly popped up and whacked Aomine on the head with her fist, making the tanned ace yelp in pain and surprise. "Stop scaring poor Sakurai-kun like that!" she scolded while huffing.

"But Satsuki! Tetsu will play a girl as that Bakagami's pair, you know! Your beloved Tetsu-kun! That red haired idiot will surely attack him! Do you even see how he looks at your crush most of the time?! Do you?!" Aomine protested after done nursing his abused head, sounding very wound up.

"It's a school play! You should be happy that Tetsu-kun is chosen for a leading role!" Momoi shouted, looking annoyed.

"No! You know how clueless Tetsu can be! Imagine what that pervert will do to him!" Aomine yelled, back, looking absolutely horrified and convinced that Kuroko's virtue was in danger.

Momoi just sighed deeply at that. "You're just jealous because Kagamin got to play as Tetsu-kun's pair," she accused, narrowing her gaze at the dark-blue haired teen who flinched slightly and turned rather red at that.

"No, I'm not!" Aomine denied hard while seething, obviously lying. "I'm just looking out for Tetsu!"

"Yes, you _are_! How many years have I known you, Dai-chan? Stop lying through your teeth!"

"Ugh… Shut up, Satsuki! You obviously don't care enough about your crush!"

"What did you say?!"

Sakurai could only look back and forth between the bickering boy and girl in panic, his eyes spinning in confusion, unable to voice his opinion, and he tried to apologize repeatedly for causing them to fight before realizing that he was pretty much ignored at that point. He thought that he should just leave them alone and was about to retreat when Aomine's strong hand caught his left shoulder suddenly, making him yelp in surprise.

"Don't run away," Aomine barked and Sakurai squeaked in fear.

"Hiiii! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorryyyy!"

"Dai-chan! I told you to stop scaring Sakurai-kun!" Momoi gave Aomine a magnificent chop on his dark-blue head, sending Aomine down to crouch on his desk, groaning in pain clutching his bumped top with one hand. "Besides, we have basketball practice at Friday! You can't skip it! And you can't force Sakurai-kun to skip as well!" Momoi was practically screaming in irritation now.

"Tch. Who cares!? The most important thing is _that play_ can't happen at all cost!" Aomine shouted back, still not releasing Sakurai's shoulder and the poor smaller light-brown haired boy could only lament inwardly on his helpless situation.

_Hiiiih! W-w-what's happening actually?!_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"… Shin-chan, what are those?" Takao couldn't help staring and sweating bullets seeing a bunch of straw dolls which suspiciously looked like a certain ace from Seirin, tumbling out of Midorima's locker. Yes, the dolls even had dual colored strands of wool perched on top of them like hair, in the same insignia as Kagami's.

"Hn, they are today's lucky item," Midorima said, giving a particularly hard squeeze on one of the dolls before glaring at it menacingly, and shoved those dolls back inside his locker one by one… none too gently.

"You liar. I heard Oha-Asa today. Your lucky item is a stuffed bear that you keep in your school bag," Takao scoffed and Midorima shifted his grouchy gaze at him. "Moreover, you don't need so many for lucky item, right? What are those for? Are you going to curse someone? Wait, those dolls look a lot like Kagami. Are you cursing him?" he just couldn't help his curiosity getting the better of him despite the warning glare Midorima sent him.

"Shut up, Takao," Midorima sounded almost hissing, his frown intensified.

"Jeez, why are you so grumpy?" Takao shook his head, looking rather concerned but also amused at Midorima's 'worse than usual' unsociability.

"It's not your business, and you will accompany me to his school this Friday." Midorima suddenly decided with a low grim tone.

"Haa? Why?" Takao blinked in confusion at that.

"I need his hair if I want this curse to work and I swear it will work so he won't be able to come out in that play… better, the play will be cancelled," Midorima narrowed his eyes at his still opened locker, already sounding like he was chanting at this point and Takao could only gape at the bespectacled green haired shooting guard.

"What about the basketball practice?" Takao asked, totally perplexed that Midorima actually wanted to skip. Because… seriously? The Shuutoku's ace was usually a slave-driver in practice, damn it! But, he wanted to skip?

"I'll double our menu the next day," Midorima grinded his teeth.

"What?! No way!" Takao protested indignantly. He didn't care if Midorima wanted to double his own practice regimen, but Takao would die if he had to tag along. "I'm NOT going!"

"You don't have a choice, Takao. It's a life and death matter," Midorima said gravely. "I have to sabotage that play before it's too late."

"Huh? What the hell are you saying, Shin-chan?" Takao widened his eyes at that. "What play?" Yes, he was still mighty mystified because Midorima didn't make any sense… at all.

"Seirin Spring Fest, Kuroko's class drama," Midorima slammed shut the door of his locker… hard.

"Huuuuh?" and Takao could only gawk at Midorima incredulously, totally baffled.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Himuro was silently watching Murasakibara playing with his desert with slight interest and curiosity. Actually, the abnormally tall purple-haired teen was stabbing at his pie apple repeatedly with his fork, producing a slightly loud clinking sound when the sharp metal hit the hard glass surface. Himuro wondered when the plate would crack if that continued.

The repetitive noise was obviously disturbing the other students in the cafeteria because they all looked at their table oddly and warily. Himuro thought it was his cue to intervene before the cafeteria lady took notice and scolded them (Murasakibara particularly) for trying to break the cafeteria property.

"Atsushi," Himuro couldn't help sighing then. It was hard to watch over an oversized child.

"What is it, Muro-chin?" Murasakibara responded slowly, but didn't seem to care because he didn't even glance or raised his eyebrows at Himuro. His eyes focused on the pie he was maiming on the plate.

"What are you doing?" Himuro asked, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek.

"I'm trying to crush Kaga-chin on my plate," Murasakibara stated, somehow his stabbing motion getting more severe.

"You do realize it's an apple pie, right?" Himuro thought Murasakibara had developed some respect for his ex-surrogate brother, but he might still hate the red haired _Tiger_ very much over their loss in Winter Cup match.

Or maybe Murasakibara had lost his mind. Either one seemed possible.

"I'm imagining that it's him I'm crushing," Murasakibara stated, looking indifferent and bored, but Himuro was rather impressed at the focus he was showing in his mindless ministration.

"Right… I don't even want to know why, but you have to stop disfiguring the pie _and the plate_ , or the cafeteria lady will be mad and ban you from eating desert in the cafeteria for the rest of your high school life," Himuro reprimanded calmly and Murasakibara's movement faltered slightly at the threat.

_Well, at least Atsushi's still responding to snack related peril._

Murasakibara gradually stopped his activity and put down his fork beside the mutilated pie before looking upward slightly at Himuro. Himuro raised his eyebrows while drinking his cup of tea. "What?"

"Muro-chin…" Murasakibara paused, tilted his head aside for a moment, seeming to think about something, before he gazed back at Himuro. "Let's go to Tokyo this Friday," he said then.

"You know we can't. We have class and basketball practice," Himuro declined coolly, thinking that Murasakibara probably wanted to hunt some sweets in Tokyo.

Murasakibara frowned slightly before pouting. "But I need to go to Tokyo… to Seirin," he said petulantly and Himuro blinked at the last word.

"Seirin? Taiga's school Seirin? Why?" Himuro didn't think so far that Murasakibara might intend to crush Kagami _literally_ , but why did he want to go there anyway? What was the occasion? He meant; Murasakibara was a lazy ass when it came to everything but sweet-related stuffs and basketball game when he was pissed, but this…?

"Well… I need to crush Kaga-chin before he can eat Kuro-chin when he's being so fluffy and delicious like cotton candy in that dress," Murasakibara tried to explain, but hell if Himuro could understand what he meant by _eating_ and _being delicious_. It always meant literally if it was associated with Murasakibara, but…

"What, Taiga finally makes his move?" Himuro was amused, thinking that Kagami finally would claim his shadow as his boyfriend.

Murasakibara made a disgruntled noise. "Muro-chin, Kuro-chin is in danger of being eaten. I have to stop the play," he said, looking stubborn and almost sulking.

"What play?" Himuro blinked again as he heard that.

"The Spring Festival events in Seirin, Kuro-chin's class play… There will be a lot of snack-vendors as well in the event. We definitely have to go there," Murasakibara said with a glint of certainty and spirit in his amethyst eyes before he gazed back at his disfigured apple pie and ate it.

…

 _Which is your main motive, Atsushi?_ —Himuro finally thought absurdly after being silent for a minute, sighing in defeat.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Um… what is this, Sei-chan?" Mibuchi looked at the training schedule Akashi just handed him a moment ago.

"Can't you read? That's our training schedule for the next three days," the red haired captain said stoically.

"Uh, I know that, but… why is everyone's menu quadrupled?" Mibuchi asked in horror, sweating profoundly at what he saw and Hayama squeaked in shock behind him upon hearing that. Nebuya whipped his head to face them so fast the others thought he would break his own neck.

"Isn't that clear? I need a day off in Friday, so I crammed the Friday's menu in the next three days," Akashi said aloofly, narrowing his eyes. "Is there a problem?" he asked dangerously then and everyone paled at that, stepping back a few meters from him.

"B-but Sei-chan… quadrupled training menu for the next three days is too hard on our regulars… I meant... we have to guide the new members as well, right? At least if it's only doubled…" Mibuchi, despite his fear of getting stabbed by a pair of scissors by the _younger_ smaller teen for talking back, had to speak up in his other teammates' behalf. After all, that training menu was impossible to undergo.

Akashi scrutinized the second in command with an evil glare and Mibuchi wished he didn't speak just now, but Akashi suddenly huffed and let out a long sigh. "You are right. I expect too much," he said, combing his hair back. "Alright, let's change it to double menu."

The others visibly sighed in relief at that.

"In return, Reo, you will accompany me to Tokyo this Friday," Akashi said again and it surprised the hell out of Mibuchi.

"Eh?" Mibuchi pointed at himself, rather bewildered.

"I need to go to Seirin and destroy a play after all. I can use some help," Akashi continued and Mibuchi could only widen his eyes in total shock at that.

_Eeeeeeeeeh!?_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kagami was in crisis.

Yes, he and Kuroko both. They had dressed once again in The Prince and Doll Princess outfits, and they were in the middle of rehearsal for the play in the Seirin High great hall. The activity was actually running rather smoothly because Kuroko helped Kagami with the lines he hadn't yet memorized, but overall, it was great. Kagami did _okay_.

That was… until this particular scene came up.

"D-do we really have to do this?!" Kagami was in the verge of freaking out, blushing furiously because…

"Of course! It's the climax of the play, you moron! The kiss scene between the Prince and the Doll Princess!" Sasaki huffed in annoyance then and the girls had been in total excitement waiting for this particular moment to come.

"Just do it and get it over with, Kagami!" all the male students seemed to try to support, but seriously, they weren't helping at all.

"I cannot help but think that our female classmates are all _fujoshi (3)_ ," Kuroko commented lowly in deadpanned look and tone from the chair he sat on. "Should we assume that the guys are _fundanshi (4)_ too?"

"I don't even know what those words mean, but I hope they are the same as crazy… because they _are_ totally INSANE!" Kagami exploded. "How the hell do you expect us to KISS in this ridiculous play?! There's just NO WAY!" he protested, his face as red and as hot as furnace at this point.

"Why the hell not?!" Ayasaki protested back, looking exasperated.

"We're both GUYS!" Kagami yelled.

"No you are NOT! In this play, you are a prince and Kuroko-kun is a princess! It's properly man and woman's roles!" Sasaki argued.

"(S)he's a freaking DOLL! Why must the Prince kiss a doll for god's sake!?" Kagami would not give up trying to pound senses into those girls' _deteriorated_ minds.

"Haa? Is your head just a decoration? You've been memorizing the lines for almost a week, Bakagami-kun! How come you still don't understand the main plot of this play? Do you even understand at all the theme of the story?!" Ayasaki bombarded Kagami with patronizing questions, making Kagami twitch in irritation.

"Ugh… shut up! Of course I know that much! It's a romantic comedy between a doll and a human! What I don't get is... how come the human even falls for the doll? Is he abnormal? You want the prince to turn into a freak that falls in love with inanimate object?!" Kagami shouted again.

Kuroko just sighed deeply at this, seeming to feel the tell-tale of headache coming with the all the screaming and yelling between Kagami and the girls. At this point, the rest of the guys could only watch the _cat-fight_ with much interest because there was just no way could they participate in it.

"Kagami-kun… shut up and do as the script says because it will be pointless to explain things as complicated as 'true love that transcends dimensions' to a brainless basketball idiot like you!" Sasaki finally snapped, her eyes glinting dangerously while the other girls also glared at Kagami with 'try to defy us and you'll be sorry' threat flaring inside their eyes.

Kagami squawked, his wild beast instinct feeling totally intimidated by the evil aura those evil witches emanated from their bodies, creating a sense of dread inside Kagami that there was no escape from this and that they really would maim him if didn't do as they said.

"K-Kuroko… say something to them, please! They're being totally unreasonable! You also don't want us to k-k-ki—," Kagami couldn't even say the word without flushing hotly.

"Kiss?" Kuroko supplied helpfully.

"YES!" Kagami clutched his head after that, totally mortified by the idea that he had to kiss a guy on stage, in front of hundreds of students.

Kuroko was silent for a few seconds before shrugging. "I do not really mind," he said and Kagami's heart almost jumped out of his throat. He couldn't help gaping speechlessly at Kuroko, shocked and bewildered beyond belief, while the girls screamed "Kyaaaaaa! Kuroko-kun, so cool!" enthusiastically while the guys looked awed by Kuroko's serenity dealing with such awkward and unbelievable situation.

"Y-you… have you gone mad as well in this pressure?" Kagami paled, strutting back several steps while looking at Kuroko in horror.

"It is just a kiss, Kagami-kun. It is not a big deal," Kuroko said, still with his dull eyes, expressionless face and even tone that irked Kagami very much.

"Not a big deal?! Of course it is! Something as precious as first kiss should be reserved for someone you love!" Kagami protested hard. The hall went dead silent instantly at that.

Kuroko was also quiet for ten seconds before "But doesn't Alex-san kiss you all the time?" he asked.

The silence stretched for a second before "WHAAAAAAAAT?!" the entire great hall exploded in total distress, even before Kagami could retort back to Kuroko, because Alex was a _different_ case and Kagami actually spoke about Kuroko's experience, damn it!

However, Kagami could only cringe at the deafening scream from the girls before-

"Oh, oh, ooooh! Kagami-kuuuuun! How could you?!" Sasaki suddenly collapsed dramatically on the wooden floor while covering her face, looking as if she was facing a tragedy.

"Ha?" Kagami was baffled at the unexpected outburst.

"How could you cheat on Kuroko-kun, you depraved bastard!?" Ayasaki wailed angrily in the following second.

"WHAT?!" now, Kagami was officially shocked and affronted at the accusation.

"Cheater!"

"Pervert!"

"Degenerate!"

"Poor Kuroko-kun!"

"W-wha—?! Who is cheating on WHOM?!"Kagami cried back in panic, suddenly feeling that his dignity was at stake here. "And for God's sake, Kuroko and I aren't in that kind of relationship, damn it! How many times should I tell you that you'll understand?!"

"On top being unfaithful and idiotic, now he's trying to feign ignorance of his relationship?! He's the worst!" more girls screamed and the guys seemed to pity Kagami so very much at this point.

"Oi!" Kagami was getting increasingly irate at the absolutely bizarre allegation, and he was even more pissed off when he didn't see any sign that Kuroko would help him out of it. "Kuroko, damn you! Help me here!" he immediately hollered at his shadow now, and Kagami could almost see the way the blue haired cross-dressing boy twitch in response.

 _Oh?_ —Kagami immediately shut his mouth up as he notice the tell-tale of irritation growing in Kuroko from the way his eyes narrowed and from the dark aura that was floating around him. Kuroko seemed about to say something when the door of the hall was suddenly banged open and someone briskly stepped inside.

The commotion inside the hall was halted briefly as a loud laughing voice was suddenly heard. "Ohohohoho! What is this? A sudden dispute inside a _team_?" An arrogant shrill voice entered the premise forcing everyone inside the hall to face the door, and there was a tall pretty girl with blond hair and amber eyes smirking at the party. "How pathetic. If you can't even manage your players, your class drama must not be worth watching, Sasaki-san."

"Who?" Kagami blinked in confusion at the sudden interruption and Kuroko seemed to wonder as well despite his deadpan stare while Sasaki's expression grew annoyed.

"Ah, it's Kirihara Ayano from class 2-A. She's been Sasaki-chan's rival since they joined the drama club last year. Oh, and she hates Sasaki-chan because the previous drama club president picked Sasaki-chan as the new president this spring," Ayasaki explained dutifully to Kagami and Kuroko who nodded in understanding afterwards.

" _Ara_ , Kirihara-san? What are you doing here? This place is reserved for our class for three hours this afternoon. Can you please _LEAVE_ now? Or what, are you so worried that our class' play will defeat yours?" Sasaki slowly stood and smirked back at the blond girl while dusting her uniform regally.

"What did you say?!" Kirihara looked positively insulted at that, but she immediately changed her expression into a mocking glare. "Ha, as if you could bait me with such a cheap trick. Your class defeats mine? Take a look at a mirror, please. Your players are all _amateurs_. Don't forget that almost all the drama club members are in _my_ class. Let me show you just how much we are superior to you!"

Kirihara clasped her hands twice and suddenly there were spot lights at the both side of the hall and another girl with long dark pigtail was standing at the right side while a boy was at the left side.

"Wait, our hall has such things installed?" Kagami was baffled seeing the spot lights.

And then, the girl started to speak, earning Kagami's attention back to the show.

" _Oh, Romeo, why is it you, Romeo?"_ the girl put her joined hands in front of her chest and acted with such heart-breaking expression.

" _Juliet, my darling,"_ and the boy responded from the other spot light, with such longing look that could even melt little kitten's heart.

"What the hell are they doing?" Kagami's sweat dropped at the ridiculous sight in front of him.

"It is part of a scene in a Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet drama," Kuroko informed, but that wasn't what Kagami was asking about.

"No, I meant why they are doing such ridiculous thing _here_ at _this moment_ ," Kagami deadpanned.

"They are probably trying to brag that we will get crushed by their play," Kuroko answered again.

"See? Our players are absolutely 100 times better than yours! You won't even have a chance to shine on the stage _after_ our splendid performance!" Kirihara laughed like an evil queen, the same way as how Sasaki usually laughed.

"What the hell is that?" Now even Kagami grew annoyed at the way the Kirihara chick was underestimating his class effort.

"Indeed she is rather annoying," Kuroko seemed to agree and it was surprising he actually commented that way since he was usually very lenient to girls generally.

Well, Kuroko was probably already fed up with this situation. Kagami was too. That's why he understood what Kuroko felt.

Kagami blinked in confusion when he was suddenly pulled. "Huh?" He looked down and found that Kuroko was gripping his hand.

"Please follow me," Kuroko said quietly and Kagami could only blush at their joined hands as he trailed behind the cross-dressing boy.

"Say whatever you want, Kirihara-san. All I see is that you are so unoriginal with your choice of play," Sasaki chuckled, looking disinterested. "We do everything from scratch. We will get more points this way," she smirked as if she already won the argument.

Kirihara visibly snarled at that. "Ha! Amateur players play amateur's work! I see your point. You won't even get a chance to hold the spectators' attention span more than five seconds—"

"Please save your bragging until the actual show," Kuroko suddenly showed up beside the blond girl, cutting her words and making her scream in shock.

"W-w-what?! S-since when have you been there?!" Kirihara pointed at Kuroko in panic, looking visibly staggered.

"You will not know the result until the end of the _match_ ," Kuroko said, looking sure and confident despite his expressionless face.

"Oi Kuroko, it's not a basketball game, you know," Kagami scoffed slightly.

"But the competition is still the same," Kuroko said before he turned to face Kagami and looked upward at his crimson eyes deeply. "Please watch," he said.

"Huh?" Kagami was confused at the sudden change of attitude and suddenly, Kuroko's eyes turned sharper and Kagami's heart skip a beat at the way Kuroko look at him. There was something in his eyes… something that captivated him that he couldn't even react when Kuroko reached ouch the both of his hands and then placed his palms on Kagami's cheeks.

"W-what—?!" Kirihara looked even more affronted and the others gasped slightly at the change of air around the two guys.

Kagami widened his eyes at this, unable to release his gaze from Kuroko.

" _My Prince… a doll's love lasts for eternity,"_ Kuroko said, softening his expression before he pulled Kagami's face down while he stood on his toes, planting a soft feathery kiss on Kagami's lips.

Kagami was speechless at the feel of those pair of lips on his and he thought his heart really just stopped because… because it was the first time… the first time that he felt such spark from just a simple, caste gesture. It didn't even last more than two or three seconds, but it already incinerated something so deeply inside him that he _knew_ was there, but he tried so desperately not to _acknowledge_.

Thus, as if it was on autopilot, Kagami knew what he had to…, _wanted to_ say. _"Your eternity… is the rest of my life."_ And he reached at the back of Kuroko's head, tangling his fingers on the fake long hair, and pulled Kuroko closer to him for another kiss.

Kagami could vaguely see the way Kuroko widen his sky-blue eyes for a moment before slowly closing then, like Kagami, and then kiss back.

It was…mind-blowing, despite being innocent enough. Kagami felt like he saw a firework exploding in night sky behind his eyelids and he could definitely go on if there was no a sudden clasp of the hands and a scream of "BRAVOOOOO!" from the very much moved Sasaki and the girls around them. He even heard the guys' squeaks of surprise at what just happened.

Kagami opened his eyes in a start. So did Kuroko and they immediately parted in shock as Kirihara squeaked in anger while leaving the place, lividly muttering curses that she wasn't going to lose no matter what.

"Kuroko-kun! You are so AWESOME! That's the BEST kiss scene I've ever seen!" Sasaki cried hysterically in tears of joy while the girls screamed "ENCORE!" repeatedly.

"Kagami-kun is wonderful as well! That second kiss was… aaaaah!" Ayasaki made a dramatic fainting gesture, looking totally in bliss. The other girls squealed amazement and dazed look in company.

Though, at that moment Kagami could care less of the uproar around him because he was still covering his mouth, feeling… heck, Kagami didn't even know what he felt! He meant, it was disturbing enough that he had to kiss a guy, a… a KUROKO, but what perturbing him even more was that…

Kagami was _okay_ with the kiss.

Oh no. He had _enjoyed_ the kiss.

 _Oh god…!_ —Kagami widened his eyes in alarm as he slowly looked upward to Kuroko who looked back at him with the same shock in his eyes. _Oh my god…!_

_What the fuck's happening here?!_

Oh yes, Kagami was officially freaking out.

**End of Chapter 4**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Additional Notes:**

1) _ **Seiza**_ : the most formal sitting position in Japan. You sit on your both legs while straightening your back.

2) _ **Tamagoyaki**_ **:** fried egg/plain omelet. It usually tastes sweet in Japan, but occasionally it's made into salty as well.

3) _ **Fujoshi**_ **:** girls that likes yaoi (BL)

4) _ **Fudanshi**_ **:** is the male version of _Fujoshi_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright… I know I told you that I'd speed up the plot, but I didn't mean the 'play' here. I speeded up the 'KagaKuro' relationship *lol* Even though it's still in the stage of Kagami freaking out upon realizing that indeed there's something between him and Kuroko (at least in his heart… ck, he's so dense it's ridiculous!) *dies laughing* I'm glad that their classmates bring them together XD. Oh, and I manage to make all the GoM and their partners appear here! XDDD  
> As for the other pairs, I haven't yet decided who will be paired up with whom. I want to make AoKise and MidoTaka and MuraHimu and AkaFuri again in this story, plus KiyoHyuu, but with this direction it will be more KiseKasa, AoSaku, AkaReo… ah, I don't know. Let me think of something later for that. For now, let's focus on the KagaKuro and the play first! XD And how will the GoM sabotage the play? *grins* It will be revealed in NEXT chapter (I hope).  
> Saa, let me know what you think! Suggestion for the pairs in this story aside KagaKuro are also welcome. Maybe there should be a poll for which side pairings you want, readers. And the most voted ones will decide it!


	5. The Complication and The Big Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kagami is freaking out and Kuroko is having internal debate and the festival still begins anyway. So much for contemplating carefully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the very late update. I haven't even updated the Epilog for Signal… *ugh*. I don't know what happened, but this year is very busy… end of the year… end year report and everything… *sighs*. Well, I even missed Akashi's birthday in the midst of my work T_T.  
> Anyway, just ignore my useless rant. Oh, I LOVE all your supportive comments. I appreciate all kudos too! Now, please enjoy this new chapter! GO!  
>  **Disclaimer and Warning: See chapter 1!**

  
**Chapter 5:** _**The Complication and The Big Day** _  


* * *

Kuroko was annoyed.

No, scratch that. Kuroko was _very_ annoyed. …Okay, maybe that was also an understatement. He was downright irritated. Even though nobody would _see_ it from his expression, but somehow, his teammates noticed his foul mood.

Koganei looked at Kuroko rather warily as the bluenette practice his pass course with the second years, _all_ of them except Kagami who mysteriously _skipped_ practice for the past two days. It was a miracle since everyone knew how crazy Kagami was about playing basket. After all, the red haired teen loved the sport very much. He even insisted playing when he was in the process of healing his injured leg after their first match with Shuutoku last year, remember?

The first years that entered the Seirin basket ball club this spring also stared at their senior with a worried look while doing their basic exercise, because the dark aura around Kuroko was slowly spreading, and even though they hadn't known their senior for that long, they understood that a moody Kuroko was a very bad thing, especially for their training regimen.

Riko glanced at Kuroko time to time albeit more discreetly, but Kuroko knew that they all were watching him with apprehension in their mind.

"Did something happen between him and Kagami?" Hyuuga's voice was quiet when he asked Izuki, but since Kuroko was already self conscious with his surrounding, he could hear it as clearly as day lights.

Izuki shrugged, but in Kuroko's peripheral sight he noticed his senior's nervous look. "Kagami is skipping. Can you believe that? And concerning Kuroko's _mood_ at this moment… it's safe to assume that something did happen between them," the Eagle Eyes owner whispered back carefully.

"A lovers' quarrel?" Tsuchida who was usually quiet seemed to be interested in the subject and all the third years looked at the dark haired teen with wide eyes.

"But Kagami kept denying that they are together!" Koganei protested in undertone, but it was loud enough that all the first years seemed to inch closer to them to hear the latest gossip about the most popular – _rumored to be_ – second year's pair. Even Mitobe threw a concerned gaze at Kuroko so blatantly afterwards.

Kuroko twitched slightly as he noticed that Kawahara, Fukuda and Furihata's attention seemed to be distracted from his passes soon after. Oh, how Kuroko tried to hold down the urge to snap at them to concentrate because Kuroko _didn't_ do that, 'snapping at people'. Well, it was very tempting at this second because honestly, Kuroko was frustrated at himself… and at Kagami.

Kagami was being too sensitive.

Alright, Kuroko admitted that he was also bothered about that kiss. He meant; he definitely felt the spark. It wasn't his first kiss on the mouth, but he had never felt _such_ kiss before in his life. The kiss he had ever shared with Aomine during his middle school couldn't even compare and he was sure he had loved Aomine at that time. It was kind of surprising.

Kuroko liked Kagami _a lot_ … as a friend, and he didn't mind the kiss at all, but he actually didn't think it would be this… _odd_? That wasn't the right operative word to describe how he had felt when his lips met Kagami's. It was more like… _good_?

Kuroko mentally blushed. That… okay, it had felt more than just good. It felt wonderful. His first kiss with Aomine was very nice, but this… this kiss with Kagami almost made him dizzy, and it was only a chaste kiss.

 _What is the deal with that?_ —Kuroko couldn't help asking himself while thinking. It was almost infuriating because he and Kagami weren't lovers, despite everyone thinking otherwise. He was very close with Kagami and sometimes they were rather touchy feely with each other, but it was because they were just really good friends.

Kuroko frowned slightly. Somehow, a tiny part of his mind sent him a wave of strange feeling about that thought. Maybe, he and Kagami were too close as friends. Maybe there was something more, but Kuroko wasn't ready to admit that.

That's why it was very vexing. It was also embarrassing and Kagami didn't help at all by avoiding him because then they couldn't figure it out together like this. Kuroko was frustrated because he wasn't confident if he could calmly deal with that problem _alone_ when he was also still confused about his own feelings, so there!

Kuroko's facial muscles twitched again as he delivered another pass, but he forgot that Kagami wasn't there, and kinda wanted to vent off his aggravation, so he used his ignite pass.

"Holy shit!"

Kuroko jolted in surprise as he heard the loud cry from his fellow second year and blinked at the sight of Kawahara crouching on the court with both his hands on his head as the ball flew over him and slammed into the wall before bouncing back to hit the iron basket where the basketballs were usually stored until it rattled dangerously.

"Ah…" Kuroko looked at the wide eyes of his teammates evenly, but he was feeling bad for what just happened.

"Kuroko, what the hell?!" Fukuda shouted in shock as Furihata hurriedly ran to Kawahara and asked the still trembling bald teen if he was alright.

"My apologize. I lost control just now. I forgot that Kagami-kun is not here," Kuroko said, honestly feeling guilty for surprising his teammates like that. "Are you alright, Kawahara-kun?" he continued, turning to face Kawahara who flinched slightly at being addressed so suddenly.

"Ah? Y-yeah, I'm okay, Kuroko. Don't worry. The ball didn't hit me," Kawahara gave him a slightly terrified smile then, and Kuroko felt even worse seeing that.

"I really am sorry," Kuroko bowed apologetically, and Kawahara was frantically telling him to straighten up since he was seriously fine.

"Um… you are kind of strange today, Kuroko. Are you alright?" Furihata turned to face Kuroko after making sure that Kawahara was really okay.

Kuroko nodded calmly. "I was thinking about something and got distracted," he answered. "But I am fine."

"Does this have something to do with Kagami-kun skipping? Did something happen between you two?" Riko frowned as she approached Kuroko. "Where is that _baka_ anyway? He skipped practice again after I threatened to quintuple his training menu for god's sake!" she sounded very irritated now.

"My apologize. I think Kagami-kun is… dealing with some crisis at this moment," Kuroko said politely while contemplating. He didn't really keen to admit that he was undergoing the same problem, so he stuck with what he thought Kagami was dealing.

"What crisis?" Now all the third years were in hearing range and they seemed to pay too much attention to Kuroko. It made him rather uncomfortable.

"It is about our drama-play. There is a kiss scene in it and Kagami-kun is freaking out about having to kiss on stage," Kuroko answered smoothly with expression devoid of emotion as usual, but he was covertly rather embarrassed as well about it.

Well, Kuroko didn't have to mention that Kagami and he already kissed in the rehearsal or their seniors and juniors wouldn't let him and Kagami live it down. He had enough problems as it was. Thank you very much.

"Uwaaah, Kagami is seriously _bratty_ it's annoying. Doesn't he know he doesn't have to seriously kiss in the play? It's a drama for god's sake! He can just pretend and fake it!" Hyuuga fumed.

"I was almost certain that an American returnee like him wouldn't make such a big deal of a kiss or two… with fellow guys?" Izuki frowned slightly, sounding rather unsure.

"And he already got kissed a lot by his teacher… who was it again?" Koganei tilted his head aside, thinking.

"Alex-san," Kuroko supplied helpfully.

"Yeah! Her!" Koganei immediately exclaimed. "Shouldn't he be used to kissing by now?" he looked puzzled once again.

"Well, kissing a girl and a guy was different…" Riko muttered with a touch of sympathy in her tone, seeming to understand what Kagami was going through because her first kiss was stolen by Alexandra as well and she didn't exactly appreciate the gesture.

"But, Kuroko… you seem to be rather affected too," Furihata suddenly piped in, earning him everyone else's attention instantly. "You act rather oddly as well even though you don't show it in your expression. Are you also bothered?"

Surprisingly… no, Kuroko should know better. Furihata's eyes were quite observant. After all, he was being trained to be the next point guard for Seirin basketball club after Izuki.

"Well… it has been on my mind. I cannot deny that. But Kagami-kun avoiding me is not helping, so I am a little irritated by it," Kuroko let out a tired sigh. "I believe that we can deal with it if we look for solution together, but Kagami-kun is adamant about figuring it alone."

"Then, tell him that," Kiyoshi's voice was suddenly heard in the gym and everyone's eyes were instantly on the entrance, seeing the care-freely smiling Kiyoshi enter the scene.

"Kiyoshi-senpai!"

"Kiyoshi!"

"Teppei!"

Everyone inside the room brightened seeing the tall brunet's face. "Yo! I came to play~!" Kiyoshi grinned happily as he approached the group.

"Good to see you, Teppei. But you aren't allowed to follow the main training. You can play with the balls at the corner," Riko put one of her hand on her waist while the other pointed at the gym corner. She also scrutinized at Kiyoshi, no doubt trying to read and calculate if he was okay enough to do any training at all with his current condition.

"Riko, that's rather mean. I want to play _basketball_ not playing with _balls_ ," Kiyoshi made a wounded look and Izuki seemed about launch a disturbing pun so Hyuuga beat him to it by elbowing him on the ribs, making the point guard yelp in surprise and pain, and giving him a warning glare while the others tried not to explode in laughter at the innuendos of Kiyoshi's words.

Riko gaped, turning rather red in the face, seeming torn between getting embarrassed and angry, or _both_ , and Kuroko couldn't help his mouth twitching up slightly as well.

"As usual, Kiyoshi is being stupid," Hyuuga heaved out a long suffering sighed, looking rather exasperated while Kiyoshi tilted his head aside, apparently clueless of what just happened.

"Kuroko, Kagami is in the backyard if you are looking for him," Kiyoshi then turned to face Kuroko, still with his easy smile.

"Um… I am not looking for him, actually," Kuroko said slowly as Kiyoshi raised his eyebrows.

"You're not?" Kuroko shook his head. "Then how will he know if you want to solve problem together if you don't make any effort to let him know?" Kiyoshi asked again and Kuroko was privately stunned.

"That makes sense," Fukuda and Kawahara nodded after looking at each other.

"For once he does make sense," Riko, face still slightly pink with eyebrows twitching, chided. The others gradually looked at Kuroko who was still trying to recover from his surprise.

Of course. Kuroko also hadn't made any attempt to make Kagami understand. It was like a repeat of _that time_ all over again after getting defeated by Touou for the first time. Kuroko and Kagami were in serious need to communicate. He expected Kagami to understand what he thought without telling the red head what was on his mind, of course Kagami wouldn't understand. He wasn't a psychic after all.

Kuroko lightly smiled after that, looking at Kiyoshi gratefully. "Thank you for your advice, senpai," he said before turning to Riko. "Coach, I'd like to leave early to attend personal matters," he said afterwards.

Riko sighed in defeat. "Alright, but you must drag that idiot's ass to morning practice tomorrow or I will triple your training portion as well, Kuroko-kun," she warned with narrowed eyes.

Kuroko secretly winced at the threat. "Will do, Coach," he responded to it coolly though, before excusing himself and getting out of the gym to see Kagami at the backyard.

**#**

"Sheesh, those troublesome duo," Hyuuga grumbled while shaking his head.

"But they are quite adorable with their couple's problem," Kiyoshi chuckled.

"So you think they are a couple as well?" Izuki snickered lightly at that, together with Tsuchida who seemed to find that very funny and amusing.

"Despite what they said, it's just a matter of time before they make it official," Koganei laughed heartily and Mitobe couldn't help smiling in agreement.

The first years seemed to be whispering to each other about how dotting the seniors were to Kuroko and Kagami and the trio second years seemed to supply them with stories about the two during their first years and it was getting rather out of hand, so Riko blew her whistle, surprising them.

"Alright, enough with gossiping! Now back to practice!" she ordered loudly.

"Yes, Coach!" everyone immediately scurried back to their training, in fear if Riko would double their menu _again_.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kagami wasn't depressed.

Well, people who saw him sitting alone while hiding his face behind his bent knees would think otherwise, but Kagami _wasn't_ depressed. On the contrary, he was too worked up to calm down, hence his misleading position at that moment, even though it was only supposed to keep him from moving around so much and tiring himself unnecessarily while he was already mentally exhausted. He had yet to figure out what happened the last time he and Kuroko _ki-_ ….

Alright, Kagami was freaking out.

Kagami knew instinctively that he was open-minded. Himuro also bat at the other team and Kagami was okay with that knowledge. He didn't think less of Himuro at all. However, Kagami also never thought that he was _okay_ with kissing a guy. He meant… Kagami was straight. Well, he only liked girls and appreciated their beauty so far. He had never thought sexually about guys before, so…

But the last time he saw Kuroko, the bluenette had been in girls' clothes. He looked like a girl and despite knowing that he was a guy, Kagami had kissed him. Yes, Kuroko kissed him first, but that second kiss was _his_ doing and along the way he had thought that the kiss was spectacular compared to every kiss he had ever experienced before.

The main problem was Kagami really _enjoyed_ the kiss. Heck, he wanted to do it again and it scared him shitless because what if he was just swept by the atmosphere? The kiss felt absolutely awesome when Kuroko was in a dress, looking stunningly beautiful like a real princess, but what if he was back to the usual expressionless guy with dead fish eyes? Would Kagami kiss him again without flinching?

Kagami was sweating bullets at this point. He wasn't sure. He _didn't_ know and he didn't dare to imagine because he already dreamt a disturbing dream about it… kissing Kuroko as a Doll Princess and then Kuroko as the usual boy. He didn't dare to sleep afterwards as well. Now, the lack of sleep was catching too and he was dizzy and confused and _fuck_! Kagami just didn't know how to fix this!

Kagami was probably overreacting, but he really _hated_ to ruin things with Kuroko. He was reluctant to admit it at first, but Kuroko had become his best friend and partner now. They had a solid friendship that Kagami treasured very much. He didn't want to feel weird around the bluenette and now he was feeling anxious and worried about what Kuroko would think of him if he knew he thought about Kuroko this way.

"This is bad…" Kagami sighed deeply, scratching his head rather curtly while slowly looking upward.

"What is bad?"

"GYAAAAH!" Kagami jumped and shrieked very (un)manly at hearing the voice and seeing the familiar face that suddenly appeared at his centerline of sight. He actually slammed his back on a sakura tree a few inches away from his earlier spot.

"K-K-Ku-Kuroko you-… you bastard! I told you to stop scaring the crap out of me like that!" Kagami stuttered an indignant yell while clutching at his chest, his heart beating a mile per second because of the shock.

"I have been here since ten minutes ago," Kuroko replied straightly and evenly and Kagami threw him a dirty look, very annoyed at how calm he sounded while Kagami was totally aggravated by all of this.

"You could have announced your presence rather than sneaking on me!" Kagami scowled, now trying to rub his back because it ached after the hard contact with the log, and also because Kagami didn't want to look at Kuroko's face yet, since Kagami would definitely blush if he did.

"I apologize. Frankly I did not know how to call out when I saw you… crouching like that," Kuroko sounded rather tentative, and it piqued Kagami's curiosity because Kuroko rarely hesitates.

Kagami slowly looked upward at Kuroko's expressionless face, but he could see a flicker of concern in Kuroko's clear sky colored eyes. "Are you okay?" the bluenette asked gently soon after, and Kagami couldn't help the heat rising on his face as he saw Kuroko sparkling.

Kagami's heart began to pick up pace and he had that sudden urge to hide away because, damn it! Kuroko looked very cute at that moment. He exhaled noisily as he averted his gaze from Kuroko, willing his blush down, but it seemed futile because his face felt like a furnace now.

They were silent for a minute or so because Kagami still couldn't trust his voice not to shake or stutter if he said anything. Kuroko seemed to take his silence as a sign of rejection and his expression micro changed into something akin to discontent. "Are you still obsessing about that kiss?"

Kagami reacted to that question very badly. "Who is obsessing about that?!" he yelled defensively while feeling his body temperature increasing uncomfortably, and Kuroko only blinked once before asking again.

"Then why are you avoiding me like plague?"

"No I'm NOT!" Kagami denied hard.

"Yes, you are. Or else you wouldn't skip practice," Kuroko gave Kagami a light chop on his head while huffing slightly, a glint of annoyance passing through his eyes.

Kagami could feel his split eyebrows twitched dangerously. He wanted to retaliate, but somehow, he couldn't find a nice retort back because Kuroko was right. He needed to get away so he could think, but instead finding solution, he ended up obsessing about it and he really didn't like how pathetic he was. He rubbed at his top while looking down.

"It was just a kiss, Kagami-kun," Kuroko sighed, sounding weary.

Kagami narrowed his sharp _Tiger's_ eyes at Kuroko then. He was irritated because Kuroko seemed to be taking this too lightly when he didn't know what was going through Kagami's mind.

"Did you feel that repulsed kissing me?" Kuroko asked again and Kagami snapped.

"No!" Kagami shouted. "No, I didn't feel that way. I-…" he didn't know how to continue without spilling his messed up thoughts.

"…so the problem is…?" Kuroko raised one of his eyebrows.

"…because I didn't feel repulsed! Don't you see the problem? I'm fine with it. That's the problem!" Kagami hid his still red face with his palm. Kuroko was suspiciously silent at this and Kagami was dreading what Kuroko might have thought about it.

"You are fine with the kiss and that is a problem?" Kuroko sounded confused for once.

Kagami groaned at that, getting the urge to scratch his face now. "Kuroko, I'd never kissed a guy before you. I kissed some girls before, but I'd never felt like _that_! Not until when we kissed," he hated that he had to explain because it also didn't make any sense to him.

"Feel like what?" Kuroko questioned deeper.

"I don't know, okay?! We are best friends and I feel very comfortable around you, but ever since that kiss… I start to feel weird! I don't like feeling like this. I hate it if we can't be friends anymore!" Kagami knew he raised his voice too much, but he was desperate at this point. He didn't know what to do anymore.

Kuroko actually looked surprised as he heard that. "Why will a single kiss ruin our friendship?"

"Because! I will start to think that we are more tan friends and I will feel even weirder after that! I'm perfectly content being your best friend and partner, but if something starts to grow along with it, if it somehow cause pain between us then…!" Kagami hadn't even finished his speech when Kuroko touched his cheek with his fingertips, surprising Kagami as his ruby eyes met Kuroko's pools of aquamarines.

Kagami was frozen and his voice died in his throat when Kuroko leaned his face closely to him, and he widened his eyes when he felt the light brush of something soft on his lips. It lasted only a moment and Kagami wasn't sure of what happened before Kuroko pulled back slowly, still not releasing his gaze from Kagami's.

"Kagami-kun is thinking too much," Kuroko said quietly and Kagami started to gape speechlessly as he noticed the faint pink color on Kuroko's cheeks. "I also feel awkward about it, but instead of panicking alone, I think we should try to figure it out together," he continued slowly.

"Y-you… just now, you…!" Kagami was still in shock as he covered his mouth. "Why did you do that?!" he spontaneously combusted then, his face feeling like it was burned, and it must have been very red because Kuroko showed a rather amused look.

"Because I want to?" Kuroko raised his eyebrows again while tilting his head cutely.

"Don't just go kissing people because you want to!" Kagami was mortified. Did Kuroko really kiss people as if it was nothing?!

"Do you not like it?" Kuroko inquired curiously.

Kagami flushed deeply at that because he knew his answer was totally positive. "That's not the problem! You can't kiss people on the mouth unless you like them!" he complained again with more aggregation.

"I do like you, Kagami-kun," Kuroko blinked, looking certain about it.

Kagami's face couldn't even feel hotter than right now. "No, no, no! You don't understand! I don't mean the 'like' like! I mean the… the 'love' like!" he was frantic now, feeling the desperation increasing to unbearable level.

"But… love is nurtured from the 'like' feeling, right?" Kuroko tilted his head now and Kagami wanted to bang his head on the tree because he didn't know how to explain the difference between the romantic love and the friendly love.

"Kuroko… you are making this harder for me," Kagami was emotionally worn out now. "Growing this love thing will destroy our friendship. I just… don't want that to happen," he felt rather gloomy after saying that.

"Why?" Kuroko asked again and it started to annoy Kagami very much at this point.

"Because! We won't be friends anymore but lovers if there's love between us!" Kagami snapped, grabbing Kuroko's jersey's collar and yanked it roughly.

"Cannot we be both?"

Kagami's heart skipped a beat at that question and at the earnest look Kuroko gave him. "W-what?" he was stumped, seriously.

"Being friends… and maybe lovers; must we decided to give it a label so soon?" Kuroko asked again, raising his both hands to touch and enveloped Kagami's which still latched on his collar. "Just like you, I am perfectly comfortable with the things between us as friends and partners, Kagami-kun. I do too, feel rather reluctant to change it, but I also cannot deny that there might be something more other than friendship in this… _us_. However, I am not ready to admit it yet. We probably have to give it more time; maybe to prepare our heart before leaping beyond the border of our feelings. At least that way, we do not have to strain our heart to fear any rejection that will hurt our feelings and ruin our friendship. Then… maybe if one of us is ready to give it a try… or if both of us are prepared for what may come afterwards… we can come back here and resolve it," Kuroko gave Kagami a small reassuring smile afterwards.

Kagami was… totally amazed.

He knew Kuroko was more mature than his age, but he couldn't comprehend how he could speak so peacefully about his feelings like that. Somehow, Kuroko's serenity also calmed Kagami's raging heartbeat and messed up feelings. He felt like… he could make a strong anchor from Kuroko's words and faith, for his own heart and feeling, and it was one of Kuroko's traits that Kagami really liked.

Kuroko sometimes drove Kagami up the wall with his weird personality, but when he was being so supportive and patient like this, Kagami absolutely loved the guy… in a friendly way.

…Okay, maybe a bit more than friendly; and Kagami was so grateful for having Kuroko as a friend and partner, he couldn't help smiling slightly as well, reaching out his other hand to hold Kuroko's that were tightening their hold on his. "Thanks, Kuroko," he whispered in a relieved sigh while closing his eyes.

" _For someday in the future where love might be born, until that day comes, it is alright to stay the way we are."_

Kagami opened his eyes again in surprise at the sudden words spoken softly by Kuroko. He recognized it as one of the Doll Princess' lines and he couldn't help but blush at how paralleled the story in their class' play with their current situation.

" _When you feel your heart is about to break, I will reach these hands out to you like a destiny."_

 _To try to keep it together…—_ Kagami's heart was warm with every word spoken by the bluenette. It was actually only lines from the drama, but he understood the sentiment. The Doll Princess wasn't an ordinary doll for the Prince, which Kagami understood completely now. She was always there for him in happiness and sadness, watching over him while he grew up.

The story was supposed to be funny, but Kagami felt that there was a deeper meaning in every line in the play now, especially the ones spoken by the Doll Princess. Maybe he could understand the Prince's lines more after grasping the meaning of her dialogues.

"Tomorrow is _the day_ ," Kagami said, suddenly remembering and feeling insecure if he could perform well in the play.

"We can _practice_ lines one more time to perfect it, Kagami-kun, maybe the other _things_ as well so we will not feel so awkward about the _climax_ of the play," Kuroko teased at the end as Kagami made an undignified noise, totally embarrassed at the implication.

 _It is alright. We can stay friends. Even though I,_ we _, start to feel more, we don't have to rush into things. We will figure out this feeling together. We will be totally okay_ —Kagami convinced himself as he looked at their joined hands. He had faith in how strong their connection was. It wouldn't be easily ruined by _anything_ at all.

Yes, Kagami Taiga believed in himself and his partner, and of course, their feelings for each other.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

The Festival was minutes away from starting. Every student was getting ready for their part to pull the visitor to vote for their respective class in popularity polling.

"Okay, everyone… it's _show time_!" the student council president blew the whistle and the Seirin gate was opened.

"WELCOME TO SEIRIN'S SPRING FESTIVAL!"

The sound of multiple fireworks marked the start of the festival. Some people near the gate turned their head facing the school which students shouted in joy. They looked very amused as some mascots appeared to call them to visit. Since Seirin's Spring Fest was an open festival, anyone could enter the school and enjoy the event. Old, young, child, _everyone_ would do.

It was Friday, so the students from other schools would come in the afternoon. Luckily, all the plays times were allocated after lunch. There were 9 classes assigned to perform play in the event, including 2 B. Since 2 B had submitted their drama application to the festival committee quite early, they were scheduled to perform in the first day of the festival at the second period after 2A.

Sasaki was fuming that they didn't perform on the first period, but Ayasaki and Tamaki reassured her that the girls and the players would do their best to get the loudest applause later. They also had the planetarium to run (in their class), so they had advantage to get more points.

Kagami and Kuroko had to wear their costumes since early morning to attract visitors at the front gate. Of course, the promotion flyers were being used as efficient as possible. Some people (especially older women) actually swooned at Kagami as they passed him, saying he was very cute. Kagami twitched at the remark. Guys didn't appreciate being called cute, okay? But for publicity (unless he wanted the girls in his class to castrate him), he had to keep smiling albeit while twitching uncomfortably.

Some guys mistook Kuroko for an actual girl. It was seriously hilarious when they started to flirt with him despite Kuroko's growing annoyance in his deadpanned look. Surprisingly, he really attracted attention with the dress and make up. So much for using misdirection. He couldn't even make them look away from him even though he tried his best to fade away. Those guys called Kuroko a stoic beauty. Terrific. Kagami had to suppress his laughter repeatedly and Kuroko _accidentally_ stepped on his foot several times.

Nearing lunch, finally some people Kagami didn't want to see appeared.

Starting from Kise Ryouta which was accompanied by his ex-senior, Kasamatsu Yukio (since he wasn't in Kaijou anymore, of course); the blond immediately spotted them even though he and Kuroko tried to hide in the crowd.

"Kuroko-chi! Kagami-chi!" Kise's eyes were sparkling as he ran to Kagami who groaned and Kuroko who was ready to bolt because he just knew that Kise would deliver a crushing hug to him.

As expected, the blond was about to jump the bluenette in a dress when Kasamatsu kicked his back, causing him to fell on the ground spectacularly. "Quit acting like a five, you dumbass!" the Kaijou ex-captain reprimanded and Kise was sobbing on the ground while whining about how mean Kasamatsu was.

"Ah, good afternoon, Kasamatsu-san," Kuroko bowed politely at the dark haired college student before he turned to face Kise who was still on the ground and added, "Kise-kun."

"Kuroko-chiiii! So prettyyyy!" Kise was perked completely when he heard the greeting. He immediately stood and then hugged Kuroko enthusiastically, seeming totally amazed and awed at the beautiful person in front of him while Kuroko immediately tried to fend him off with one hand.

"Whoa, you look amazing in that dress, Kuroko," Kasamatsu remarked, widening his eyes slightly as his eyes met Kuroko who thanked him immediately at the compliment. Kise was still fawning over him, but Kuroko completely ignored him.

"Yo," Kagami greeted soon after, raising one of his hands.

"Wow, you look very different too, Kagami," Kasamatsu chuckled in surprise at the charismatic view of the red haired teen in front of him.

"Yeah, uh…" Kagami was awkward, feeling self conscious about it. Kasamatsu laughed slightly.

"You look good," Kasamatsu said and Kagami blushed. "I heard you'll perform a play?" he asked afterwards.

"Yes, our class play will perform at 2 p.m., would you please come by to see our play later?" Kuroko offered him the flyer after he punched Kise on the gut and now the blond was once again on the ground, nursing his abused stomach.

"Ah, I've seen this flyer. Kise has it on the phone," Kasamatsu grinned. "Both of you look very chummy together," he teased then.

Kagami blushed even redder and Kuroko coughed slightly, looking away.

"Aaaaaah!" Kise's sudden cry surprised the other three. "That's right! Kagami-chiii! Don't think about strange things when Kuroko-chi is dressed like this, you pervert!" he then immediately confronted the unsuspecting Kagami, instantly annoying the hell out of him.

"Who the hell is thinking strange things?! Aren't you talking about yourself?!" Kagami jabbed Kise's chest with his index finger hard.

"Whaaat? That's not true! I appreciate Kuroko-chi's beauty in a dress! Not thinking strange about it!" Kise denied, slapping Kagami's hand away and flushing slightly, while pouting and protesting like a child.

"Hah! Says the one who immediately tried to grope him just now," Kagami rolled his eyes patronizingly.

"I did NOT!" Kise retaliated loudly; face getting even redder in mortification now.

"Kasamatsu-san, please just ignore those two obnoxious idiots over there and enjoy this festival. You will get a headache if you listen to them bickering," Kuroko said expressionlessly.

"I couldn't agree more," Kasamatsu responded to that suggestion with a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek while sighing wearily.

**#**

On the same time at the other places, one by one everyone from the GoM was heading to Seirin High... with their own agenda in their minds...

**End of Chapter 5**

**Tbc…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright. This is stretching. I'm sorry. And the humor… ugh, it's not as funny as the previous chapter! I put too much words in Kagami and Kuroko's mental crisis *lol*. Well, at least the festival begins now and the GoM will appear one by one until the time the play starts. I know I haven't revealed what the GoM will do to sabotage the play, but the word count… TT_TT and I have to go away until after Christmas (even though I don't even celebrate that holiday for god's sake *rolls eyes*). End of the year is a very busy time for me… gathering big family and stuffs *sighs*. Well, I hope this story is still interesting enough for you guys. See you in next chapter!
> 
> Oh, and in case I forgot to post something at the last day of this year… HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! XD


	6. The First Attempt and The Countermeasure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another GoM member shows up, and there are vampire, host, werewolf, samurai and neko-mimi on their way...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Disclaimer and Warning: _See chapter 1!_**  
>  **A/N:** HAPPY BELATED NEW YEAR everyone! I know, it's kinda late, but still…! XD This is the first fic I updated this year (2013) and shoot! I haven't prepared anything for Kuroko's birthday! I hope I can make something… damn. I'm busy too. Anyway, sorry for the late update! Hope you're still with me and this story. Don't hold back! Please enjoy this new chapter!

  
**Chapter 6:** _**The First Attempt and The Countermeasure** _   


* * *

"So," Kagami's split eyebrows were twitching dangerously when he narrowed his sharp crimson eyes at Kise's topaz colored ones. "Why the hell did you come back here, _again_?" he asked after the Kaijou's ace showed up at the gate for the umpteenth time to bug Kuroko despite the bluenet's attempt to push him away numerous times previously.

Kagami was annoyed as hell because Kise was hindering his and Kuroko's task to pass the flyers around to the other visitors. The girls, both from their school and _other schools_ , were crowding in front of them to get a glimpse of (or, actually a very good look at) Kise while squealing madly, announcing their undying love for the popular model.

_Damn those rabid fan girls! If this goes on any longer, we won't be able to promote our class' play at all!_ —Kagami was fuming on the inside.

True, the red head wasn't thrilled to play as a prince, but Kagami would be damned if a _fucking week_ of his finest effort to memorize his dialogues and acts was wasted just because of Kise's idiocy. He'd die trying if he had to, to introduce their play to the prospect audiences so their class would get a top rank at popularity poll.

"Isn't it okay? Look, I gather spectators for you," Kise replied while showing his charming model smile at the girls. As predicted, they automatically screamed hysterically in reaction, calling (or more like screaming) Kise's name at the top of their lungs.

"As if! You're bothering us just by being here! We can't promote the play if you hog all the attention you dumbass! Go away already!" Kagami shouted, trying to overcome the earsplitting united excited shrieks of those girls. It was a very challenging thing to do, despite Kagami's energetic (angry) roar.

Kuroko didn't say anything, being quiet as usual, but Kagami knew his shadow was irritated as well because Kise didn't let him go (yet) despite all his struggles combined to free himself from the taller teen's clutch. Kagami could feel the tell-tale of his murky mood by looking at the atmosphere around the bluenet and he really didn't want the situation to worsen to the point where Kuroko snapped.

An irate Kuroko wasn't a pretty sight. It could end bloody too (for Kise, at least). Kagami would rather be the brute than witness Kuroko's violence.

Where was Kasamatsu when you needed him? The only one who was successful on pulling Kise away from the frilly dressed Kuroko, even though it was only for some minutes for several times, was the ex-Kaijou's captain. Obviously, because Kise still respected him so much… or maybe because Kasamatsu kicked Kise like there were no tomorrow when the blond didn't do what the college student ordered him to.

Though, Kagami kind of understood if Kasamatsu just wanted to leave the blond behind since he was obviously a handful _brat_ to handle, but Kagami and Kuroko seriously needed him if they wanted to finish handing those pile of flyers to the visitors.

It was almost noon and Kagami was starving. Those demonic girls from his class didn't let him have breakfast this morning because they had to assemble at school at ungodly hour to finish all the detail of preparation for the play and for the planetarium.

_Come on, Kasamatsu! Please come here and drag this annoying guy away!_ —at this point, Kagami was praying to every deity around (if there was) inwardly.

"Oi, Kise!"

_Oh, speak of the devil!—_ Kagami turned to face the shorter, black haired older male who seemed about to explode in total fury as he stomped _hard_ towards Kagami, Kuroko, Kise and the fan girls.

"Uh-oh," Kise took a step back upon noticing Kasamatsu's arrival.

"Kasamatsu-san…" Kuroko looked almost, _almost_ relieved as he also saw the older guy.

"Ki—se—!" Kasamatsu was growling darkly before he started to run, and then jumped to land a particularly hard kick on Kise's back while Kise was flailing, trying to dodge the unexpected attack futilely. The younger blond howled in pain as he literally kissed the ground because of the powerful crash.

"Oow…! What was that for, senpai?" Kise whined in crocodile tears, nursing his abused back (and face), while Kasamatsu was looming over him, outwardly very intimidating.

"How dare you leave me alone in the middle of your crowding fan girls! You purposely directed their attention to me, huh?! You got quite guts for using me as a bait to escape…!" Kasamatsu grabbed Kise's uniform collar and glared daggers at the frightened weeping blond who seemed to have just realized that he had angered a beast.

"Hyaaah! That wasn't on purpooooose!" Kise cried while covering his head with both hands as if he was trying to protect it from the upcoming assault which didn't came because Kasamatsu just roughly shook the blonde's body repeatedly to vent his aggravation.

Kagami couldn't help feeling rather sorry, both for Kasamatsu and Kise for totally separated reasons. But bless Kasamatsu for coming to their aid! It was a chance to give all the flyers away to the dumbfounded girls that were watching their idol being maimed by another equally hot guy.

"Anyway, why the hell are you back here?! Stop bugging Kuroko and Kagami, you idiot! They have a job to do in the festival!" Kasamatsu was still yelling to Kise's ear.

"But senpai! All I do is protecting Kuroko-chi!" Kise defended himself, still sobbing.

"You said that again… but from what, huh?! He is playing a role, Kise!" Kasamatsu continued his bark, exasperation evident on his expression.

"Didn't senpai see the promotion flyer?! Kagami-chi is totally interested in _dressed-like-a-girl_ Kuroko-chi! He's a pervert!" Kise wailed louder.

"I'm NOT! Are your eyes just for decoration?! It's a freaking pose!" Kagami retaliated in reflex as he heard the untrue accusation. Seriously! What kind of nonsense was Kise spouting about?! He wasn't into cross-dressing, damn it! He might have a little interest in Kuroko, but not because of the dress!

"Huh. Aren't you the one who's blind?"

A deep baritone voice was suddenly heard, interrupting Kagami and Kise's bickering. Kagami's right eye (and ear) twitched because he recognized the voice.

"Uwaaah, it's very lively in here!"

Another male voice with a higher pitch followed soon after. Kagami also knew this tenor voice. Turning around slowly, Kagami, with a bead of sweat on his cheek, dreaded to face the two familiar faces he'd rather not see today. "M-mido—"

"Midorima-chi! Takao-chi!" Kise abruptly squealed cutting Kagami's speech. Yes, the blond did, judging from the abnormally happy tone he used and the brightened expression, Kise Ryouta was squealing as he called one of the equally insane GoM member and his chaperone.

"Hn," Midorima huffed, pushing his glasses up his nose bridge while Takao waved at them with a wide smile on his face.

_Ugh. Midorima is as unpleasant as ever—_ Kagami could feel the upcoming headache at this point.

"Yah, Kagami! Pft—a prince outfit, really? Oh, and… whoa~ Kuroko! You look _amazing_!" Takao pointed at Kuroko and started to laugh.

Kagami didn't know if Takao was complementing or making fun of Kuroko's outfit, but Kuroko didn't seem to be impressed at the gesture. Kagami also didn't appreciate being snorted at, but Takao's reaction on Kuroko's appearance was priceless, so he let it slide quite easily.

"Takao, have more tact, will you," Midorima reprimanded the owner of Hawk Eyes, but he was practically ignored because Takao laughed even harder. He seemed to pay no heed to Takao afterwards since he faced Kuroko immediately. "Don't mind him, Kuroko. As ridiculous as your class might be for deciding to put you up on a dress, you look fine," he said then, not exactly complimenting.

However, given that it was Midorima who was speaking, it was actually one hell of a flatter.

"Thank you, Midorima-kun," Kuroko seemed to catch the disguised praise just fine and gave the taller teen a small smile, his mood seeming to lighten for a bit, and Midorima apparently couldn't look away from that nice view.

_Sheesh. GoM and their tendency to be smitten with Kuroko—_ Kagami rolled his eyes, somehow feeling rather irked by it.

"Arara, Shin-chan, you're blushing~!" Now Takao teased and laughed at Midorima, and Kagami couldn't help snorting at that.

"W-what?! I'm not! Stop spouting lies, Takao!"

Kagami could have sworn the tall, bespectacled, green haired guy's face reddened quite a bit, not sure from embarrassment or anger at this point, but yep. Midorima blushed alright, despite the indignant squeak. It was hilarious, really. Kagami almost couldn't hold back the bubble of laughter that threatened to surface from him.

"It is nice to see you guys here to visit our school festival. Please enjoy your time." Kuroko, in the face of his increasing impatience _again_ , still greeted both Takao and Midorima with polite manner.

"D-don't misunderstand. We just happened to pass by…" Midorima said while gazing back at Kuroko, probably trying to act cool. He fiddled with his glasses again and they didn't even need repositioning.

"Lies~! Shin-chan actually skipped practice to come here since he really wanted to!" Takao piped in again loudly and Midorima sputtered in humiliation as he tried to strangle the other boy to shut him up.

"Midorima-chi! Takao-chi! Nice to see you guys here!" Kise seemed totally joyful as he greeted the new addition of their party, not exactly caring enough even though Midorima was trying to kill his own partner at that moment.

"Kise, so you came here too," Midorima didn't look surprised as he saw the blond, slowly calming down as he released his choke from Takao who was already blue in the face.

"Of course! After seeing something like _that promotion poster_ , I believe all of us think about the same thing, right?" Kise smiled conspiratorially at Midorima, his honey colored eyes glinting slightly.

"Hn." Midorima huffed again, but didn't appear to disagree as his emerald irises also glimmered suspiciously.

"What the heck are they talking about?" Kasamatsu looked at the two aces ridiculously as a bead of sweat trickled down his cheek.

"Ah, hello Kasamatsu-san! It's been awhile!" Takao, after recovering from his oxygen-deprived state, noticed and greeted the older fellow point guard.

"Oh, hey, Takao," Kasamatsu greeted Takao back before they started to chat by themselves, completely closed their eyes to the main characters who could only stare at them in awkward silence.

"…Maybe we should just leave them alone and move to another spot so we can continue our work," Kuroko suggested after awhile.

"Agreed. Can't believe the crazy is multiplying so rapidly…" Kagami could only concur while letting out a long weary sigh at this point. He was so not inclined to entertain the GoM more than this, and somehow, he had a bad feeling that they hadn't even entered the main course of the upcoming chaos.

"Just be grateful they are not breeding anytime soon." Kuroko muttered, rather in a sinister way, and Kagami almost choked to hold down his laughter at the joke which apparently wasn't a joke at all since it came from Kuroko.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Hai, hai! If you are tired of childish guys from your life, come visit us to know the awesomeness of high school life in Seirin with our splendidly mature and handsome boys guiding you, girls~!" Riko winked at the two middle school girls who immediately blushed when they passed her class room at the sight of two handsome and mature guys behind her.

"Is it really okay to lie so blatantly like that to the potential new students next year?" Hyuuga whispered to Izuki who was busy smiling invitingly at some older ladies who giggled at him in return.

"Shush, not now, Hyuuga-kun! Get in character, please!" Riko poked him on the ribs and Izuki chuckled slightly before turning to face Hyuuga.

"It's pretty hard to entice pretty ladies. Oh! That's a nice one, just now!" Izuki gasped with sparkling eyes.

"Oh, jeez. You should just shut up or they will run away, Izuki," Hyuuga mumbled in annoyance now.

"How rude. Young lady loves a good humor," Izuki pouted at his basketball captain slash best friend at that degrading remark about his joke.

Riko and Hyuuga stared at Izuki with an arid look in response to that.

From a few classes away, the sound of girls giggling and squealing could be heard. Blinking, Riko turned around to the source only to find a tall boy with dark brown hair and _peculiar_ clothes walking towards her class direction.

"Eh… isn't that…?" Riko gaped witnessing such a happy-go-lucky smile plastered on the brunet's handsome face, while the guy was casually laughing in the center of the horde of female population walking along with him.

"Huh?" Izuki blinked as well in surprise as Hyuuga literally dropped his jaw on the floor seeing the same scene.

"Ki-Kiyoshi?!" the glasses wearing captain screeched in total shock.

"Huh?" Kiyoshi seemed to hear the holler, so he looked upward and a wide smile broke out of his expression, showing two small pointy fangs to the other three. "Hey guys~!" he waved at them happily as he approached them more notably.

"W-w-what the hell are you wearing?!" Hyuuga pointed at Kiyoshi's outfit with trembling hand while opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water and beads of corn-sized sweats adorning his cheeks.

"Teppei, that costume…! Are you…?" Riko was immensely impressed, still gawking.

"You can tell? I'm a Count Dracula. A vampire," Kiyoshi's grin widened, showing off his costume by expanding his black-bloody-crimson robe.

"Kyaaa! Please bite us, Vampire-san~!" the girls instantly swooned at Kiyoshi's coolness while the tall brunet just chuckled and smiled at them so friendlily like usual.

"Uwaaa… you look so… _wow_ ," Riko was speechless now after seeing the girls' reaction to how good looking and attractive Kiyoshi was with the extravagant outfit. The combination of medieval bright red long-sleeved tunic and back long pants on him was enhancing his pale (make-up, obviously) fair skin. His slicked back bangs showed more of his strong masculine feature. And those eyes… there was a hint of red-ring around his each dark chocolate iris (contact lens?). Moreover, all those visible skins seemed to sparkle slightly (was that glitter?) under the light, plus the long black-red robe to complete the majestic look…

'Wow' didn't even cut out to describe Kiyoshi in one word at that moment.

"Oh… so the haunted house you mentioned before is a western styled one, huh…?" Izuki commented with an astonished look on his face.

"Ahaha, it's a mystery house! I guess we did a great job in making it. I'm going to bring these lovely customers to try our class," Kiyoshi winked slightly and all the girls sighed at him dreamily.

_No… I think the amazing one here is you for attracting so many people with just walking!_ —Riko twitched, feeling the imminent danger of losing her host-club popularity to this one airhead. She wondered how Kiyoshi could do that when he was such a space cadet sometimes.

"Ugh… of all creatures, you chose the one I hate the most…!" Hyuuga shuddered, his face looking rather pale and his body still trembling.

"Huh? What, Hyuuga, you don't like vampires?" Kiyoshi leaned closer to him, tilting his head aside while raising his eyebrows and Hyuuga squawked in alarm at the sudden close proximity, apparently frantically trying to back away from Kiyoshi while bellowing at him not to come closer that he didn't see where he was going and his foot caught the metal frame of the sliding door behind him.

And so, Hyuuga tripped on it. "Whoa!"

"Look out!"

Luckily, Kiyoshi acted fast enough that he caught Hyuuga's arm before he really fell on the floor. He pulled the shorter bespectacled boy closer to him in a gentle embrace. "Jeez, that was close… you alright?" Kiyoshi then bent slightly to look more closely at Hyuuga's face which was interestingly pink at the moment.

"H-huh?" Hyuuga tilted his face upward, ostensibly dazed actually.

Kiyoshi smiled in a clear amusement at Hyuuga's rather cute look with all that confusion. "Be careful, host-san. Or this vampire might just bite you for being so clumsy," he whispered teasingly near Hyuuga's ear while sneaking his hand to tighten his hold on Hyuuga's waist, and the Seirin's captain instantly flushed so hard that he actually steamed in reaction to the rather _seductive_ threat.

"Kiyoshi!" Hyuuga shrieked so loudly, looking totally horrified at the care-freely laughing vampire-dressed up boy as the brunet walked away. The girls were blushing and screaming 'kyaaaaa! So cooool!' behind him and the Goosebumps were visible on Hyuuga's skin.

"Wait a sec, Teppei! Stop stringing all the girls using our host!" Riko shouted as well, annoyed that Kiyoshi used her precious host club as a mean to get more customers for his class benefit. "At least use your own class member!"

"That's the problem?!" Hyuuga protested indignantly, still totally blushing in mortification, and Izuki didn't help by snickering at his friend's misfortune. "Stop laughing Izuki! It's not funny!" Now, he shifted his complain at the Eagle Eyes owner before grumbling in annoyance, seeming still embarrassed judging from his slightly red face.

Riko just couldn't help but cackle at her boys' silliness.

"Huh, so where's Tsuchi? Isn't he in 3B, Kiyoshi's class, as well?" After seeming to calm down, Hyuuga stroked his neck now, maybe trying to pat down the body hair that was still standing because of what Kiyoshi did to him a few minutes ago.

"I'm here."

A voice from beside Izuki surprised the other three as they whipped their heads Riko thought they almost broke them. "Tsuchida-kun?!"

"Tsuchi?!"

"Seriously. I'm not even Kuroko but you guys failed to notice me?" Tsuchida looked down then.

"Ahaha, sorry, Tsuchida-kun. Kiyoshi really attracted attention just now, so…" Riko felt bad that they didn't pay enough attention to their surroundings.

"Tsuchi… that outfit… are you werewolf?" Izuki asked, prodding at the dark brown fake fur on Tsuchida's cheek and arm before patting the dirty looking and slightly torn apart white shirt.

"Yep! It's well made, right? I made it myself," Tsuchi grinned slightly then, seeming to lighten up as Izuki asked more questions regarding his costume, obviously only to entertain him.

"Speaking of costume… isn't that idiotic duo also dressing up for the drama play this afternoon?" Hyuuga spoke suddenly, reminding Riko that they decided to watch the play after changing shift.

"Yeah, Kuroko-kun and Kagami-kun's class performs at 2 p.m. if the schedule is on time. I already asked some of my friends in the school committee to save us the best spots for later," Riko smiled proudly while making a peace sign.

"By some friends you don't mean Fukuda and Furihata, right?" Hyuuga gave her an accusing stare.

"Well, what's the harm in using a privilege if you have one?" Riko's smiled widened slightly. She wasn't in the slightest feeling guilty about it, since it was a common sense.

"Suddenly I feel sorry for those two…" Hyuuga shook his head while sighing tiredly at that.

"Now, back to the job, Hyuuga-kun! Entice as many girls as you can!" Riko then slapped Hyuuga's back hard enthusiastically that the taller boy winced.

"I know already. Stop pushing so much, jeez…" Hyuuga retorted before he took a deep breath and ten plastered a selling smile on his face while greeting, "Welcome to Class 3D's High School Host Guiding Club!"

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Aaaah! When we're talking, Kuroko-chi is gone!" Kise whipped his head around only to find the spot beside him –where Kuroko should have been standing a moment before- empty.

"What?" Midorima turned to face the spot as well and clicked his tongue. "Ck. Kagami is gone as well. He ran away, huh? Just before I could get to pluck a strand of his hair too," the green haired boy looked rather annoyed.

"Plucking his hair, for what?" Kise asked while looking confusedly at Midorima.

"That's none of your business," Midorima dismissed him by fixing his glasses spot again in a habitual gesture.

"Shin-chan wants to curse Kagami with straw dolls," Takao answered for Midorima even though he himself was still conversing with Kasamatsu.

"Takao!" Midorima scolded the Shuutoku's point guard again in irritation.

"Seriously, what is wrong with all of you GoM members…?" Kasamatsu looked visibly drained at this point, dealing with both Kise and Midorima.

"Midorima-chi! So you don't want Kagami to play in the drama as Kuroko-chi's prince too, huh?" Kise grasped Midorima's hands while looking at him with sparkling eyes, knowing that he had an instant ally to help him sabotage the play.

"Don't get me wrong. It's not like I'm worried about Kuroko or anything. Just… it's a human nature to stop the crime that might happen on the stage," Midorima huffed, turning a bit pink in the face again for some reasons.

"Ahaha, Midorima-chi, seriously, again with such tsundere's line?" Kise chuckled, totally getting the idea that Midorima was as concerned as him about it. "We really can't leave Kuroko-chi alone, huh? Since Kuroko-chi is very clueless about things like this."

"That's why; it's not like that!" Midorima protested as he yanked his hand away from Kise's grip.

"More importantly, what kind of curse do you want to put on Kagami-chi? It's not deadly curse, right? We don't really have to off him to get him off the stage," Kise didn't mind Midorima's denial. As long as they had the same goal, they could join forces to achieve it.

"What about you? You want to sabotage the play, right? What do you have in mind?" Midorima shot back, seeming slightly uncomfortable to breathe out a word about his own plan.

"Hmm… I just thought if I can get attention of all the girls in this festival, then there won't be audiences to watch the play, so it will get cancelled, but looking at how popular the play seems, maybe I will pay a visit to the back stage to have all the personnel abandon the play for my unscheduled live performance," Kise thought out loud before smirking slightly. "That will be fun."

"Hmph, how imprudent. You should think of it more thoroughly," Midorima nitpicked. "If you go through with that idiotic plan, not only Kuroko's class play, but also all the plays will get cancelled and it will ruin the festival."

"Then, what do you have in mind, Midorima-chi?" Kise pouted at the bespectacled green haired boy then, wanting to know if he had a nicer and neater plan to sabotage a drama play.

"If the main character doesn't show up, the play will get cancelled, right? If my curse is on effect, Kagami's foot will trip on something… then misfortune like sprain ankle will befall him. Therefore he can't participate in the play, so his class play is off without bothering the other classes' performances," Midorima-chi said seriously with luminous glasses and Kise squeaked in fright as he could see the straw doll peeking out from Midorima's uniform pocket.

"Hiii! Midorima-chi, please don't says such scary thing with serious face! It's disturbing!" Kise shouted while moving back several steps away from Midorima, paling slightly.

"What? It's properly tactful and better than yours," Midorima defended himself and his plan with raised eyebrows.

"You're so mean! You actually want to hurt Kagami-chi! Don't do that! Think about basketball! Kagami-chi can't play in the game with sprained ankle!" Kise wailed now, attracting so much attention with his loud voice that his fan girls and everyone else started to look at them funnily while whispering at each other quite distressingly.

"Sssh! Stop causing such a racket, you idiot! You want to spill the secret?!" Midorima chastised the blond then, while stomping towards him and trying to shut him up by covering his mouth.

" _B-buht! Midrmac's bemng scrl!_ " Kise was holding onto Midorima's wrist before he pushed the hand away to uncover his mouth so he could speak more properly. "Poor Kagami-chi… I don't want him to get hurt just to get him off the drama play, Midorima-chi. Can we think of more… err… _gentler_ plan?" Kise suggested then, rather nervously, and maybe desperately.

"A gentler one… like holding Kagami up at a certain place so he can't show up?" Midorima seemed to consider changing his plan, looking rather thoughtful.

"Yes, yes! If it's you and me, we can do it!" Kise beamed then.

"You two…"

An eerie voice from behind Kise made the blond and even Midorima flinch slightly as they turned around slowly only to be greeted by Kasamatsu who cracked his knuckles with intimidating glare.

"The more I heard you guys, the more I'm convinced to chain Kise up so he won't cause any trouble for this school. Right, how about you accompany this nice senior of yours to get some food, since I have been kind enough to _accompany_ your _sorry ass_ in my busy schedule, huh? Kise—!" Kasamatsu loomed at Kise who paled severely and Midorima apparently felt an ominous threat, so he had moved quite far away only to stare in slightly horror as Kise met his doom.

"Hieeee! Forgive me, senpaaaai~!" and Kise couldn't help wailing pitifully while he was being dragged away by the fuming violent senior.

**#**

"H-how scary… that ex-Kaijou captain, almost like Ootsubo-senpai," Midorima couldn't help muttering quietly, shivering slightly, and his face paling considerably.

"Neh, Shin-chan! Shin-chan! Why don't we go to that shooting stand over there and play?" Takao spoke suddenly, while grabbing and pulling at Midorima's sleeve as if nothing happened there a moment ago.

"Ah? I'm not here for playing, Takao. Let go and we should-," Midorima turned around only to find Takao looking at him with wide hopeful sparkling eyes like a five year old and he groaned. Takao wouldn't listen to him if he was like that. Worse, as much as Midorima hated to admit it, he couldn't really resist that look.

"Please, please, please! Pretty please? It's a festival, Shin-chan! Come on! I already listen to all your requests. Just this one will do, okay?"

Midorima hated it when Takao used that tone and that look, his trump card. Seriously, sometimes he thought Takao always listened to all Midorima's wishes just because he wanted to use this every time Takao could.

"Fine, just the shooting stand and we're looking for Kagami," Midorima sighed in resignation and Takao whooped in joy.

"Yay! Shin-chan, you're the best! I love you!" and Takao gave him a bear hug, surprising Midorima so much he squawked while blushing furiously.

"Takao!" Midorima wanted to hit the raven, but he already ran to the shooting stand a few meters ahead of them, so Midorima could only fume (and still heating up so splendidly) while muttering obscenities at him as he stomped away, following Takao's steps.

* * *

**Conclusion**

First attempt: _failed._

Countermeasure: _both respective GoM partners._

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Meanwhile, Kagami and Kuroko were…

"Senpai, you look very nice and manly," Kuroko complimented Mitobe as the tall center put down a plate of traditional sakura shaped rice-cake filled with adzuki bean. It was very delicious and Kuroko actually helped himself for a second serve after eating the first one while Kagami was eating his third bowl of rice with roasted eel happily in so much gusto beside him.

Yep, since Kagami was whining all morning till noon that he was very hungry, they were relieved from the promotion task and could take their rest until they had to assemble at 1.30 p.m. later. That's why, now they were in Class 3C, Mitobe and Koganei's class now, since they opened a cosplay café and both Kuroko and Kagami knew Mitobe's cooking expertise.

All the hard work this morning was worth this blissful happiness inside the comfortable and unique café. Moreover, Kuroko and Kagami got to see Mitobe, dressed like a samurai in Edo period, in action.

Apparently, Mitobe wore a Shinsengumi's member costume, a formal kimono and hakama with white and light blue color. He even put on the haori and the white headband with some letters written down. _Aku-soku-zan_ (evil-must-kill), it was very detailed and interesting. Kuroko wasn't sure whom he tried to imitate, but his nice personality seemed to fit Okita Souji's character… or maybe Hajime Saito since he was also a quiet person.

Mitobe smiled kindly at Kuroko when Koganei unpredictably showed up beside the taller teen and said, "Mitobe said, 'thank you for your compliment,' nya~!"

Kagami seemed about choke on his own food as Kuroko blinked in surprise seeing their cheery senior unexpectedly showing up out of nowhere, dressed like a maid with neko-mimi and neko-paws completed with a long brown tail and jingling bel tied around his neck with red ribbon and— _is he wearing a skirt?_

"K-K-Koganei-senpai!?" Kagami sputtered in shock, after gulping his food with much difficulty.

"What is it, nya~?" Koganei meowed while smiling happily, seeming to be totally comfortable in his very cattish and cute _pink_ maid outfit.

"Senpai… you look… very _atypical_ ," Kuroko didn't know what to say, so he just said the first word that appeared on his mind even though it was quite disturbing seeing a manly guy like Koganei wearing a maid costume. Couldn't he pick a butler's one instead of a maid's?

"Hehe! Even like this, I'm quite popular, ya know?...nya~." Koganei said (meowed again) while tapping his chest proudly with his brown furry _paw_.

"Hyuuu~ Koganei-kun, so cuuute!"

"Koganei-chan! Come here please!"

It was true. The catcalls and the _squeals_ from the _guys_ in the café were quite deafening. Mitobe smiled ruefully at that while Kagami was still gaping. A bullet size of sweat rolled down Kuroko's cheek. Apparently, Koganei was the mascot of Class 3B. He was indeed very popular… among the _boys_. Though, the girls just giggled seeing the funny scene.

"Mitobe, give me food! Food, nya~!" Koganei looked upward at Mitobe with shiny buoyant eyes and Mitobe sighed slightly before lifting a piece of cake from the tray he was holding and offered it to the shorter boy. Koganei opened his mouth and ate the cake directly from Mitobe's hand before purring "Delicious, nya~," while licking Mitobe's finger and his own lips almost sensuously.

Mitobe widened his eyes and Kagami dropped his jaw on the table as Kuroko was speechless. A brief silence befell the classroom for a few second before-

"Aaaaah! Mitobe, not faaaaaair!"

"I want to feed Koganei-chan too!"

"Give me more rice cakes, damn it! I'll buy them all! Koganeeei! Come here and let me feed yooou!"

The entire guys in the class exploded at the scene. Period.

**End of Chapter 6**

**Tbc…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *lol* Yes, I lolled at the end of this chapter. Seriously, Koganei… *grins* I hope this chapter is funny enough for you! Next chapter another GoM member will show up again~3 Who might that be? XDDD Can't wait to write it! And I have so much fun making hints of Kiyo/Hyuu and Mito/Koga here that I forgot to make the KagaKuro *ugh*. But we will have plenty in the next chapter, probably. Anyway, I'm waiting for your feed-back here. So please do give me, okay! Jaa!


	7. The Sweets, The Horror and The New Threat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, Aomine perversely tests the water, Kagami is obliviously jealous and sweets and horror rules the world. Also, don't forget Kuroko and his inane resemblance to Akashi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Disclaimer and Warning: _See chapter 1~_**  
>  **A/N:** Yosh! Another update for you guys~! Sorry for taking so long… Kuroko's b'day is coming up and I still have a half of his birthday present to post at 31st and I haven't even typed it down *ugh*. Also, thanks for all the reviews for the previous chapter! New faves and alerts also excited me to no end since I started this story! Anyway, please enjoy this new chapter for now… GO!

  
**Chapter 7:** _**The Sweets, The Horror and The New Threat** _  


* * *

Kagami was still speechless, apparently not yet recovered from the shock he suffered in Class 3C earlier because of Koganei's _supposedly_ innocent act enjoying delicious delicacy, a rice cake _made by_ _Mitobe_ , directly from _Mitobe's hand_ , even though both Kuroko and Kagami had gotten out from the said class _._

The uproar that happened right after didn't help the matter. It was rather hilarious, though… seeing everyone (the guys) so worked up over such a simple conduct. Kuroko had never realized how popular their cattish senior was before then.

Oh yeah, Mitobe's very interesting _blushing_ face was very priceless to look at, especially while dressed as a samurai. He also seemed dazed the entire time afterwards when he was serving the other customers, unable to tear his gaze away from his fingers that had been kittenishly licked by his shorter best friend.

"Our senpais are quite a pair too, huh?" Kuroko couldn't help commenting and like a cue, Kagami snapped awake from his trance.

"What the hell was _THAT_ about?!" and _of course_ the red head stopped abruptly and bellowed rather hysterically on the spot.

Kuroko held down an urge to roll his eyes. Seriously, Kagami was so slow. But that's what made him so incredibly adorable… _Oh._ Yep, Kuroko just had an epiphany that he was probably very attracted to Kagami as a person. After all, considering Kagami 'adorable' despite his physical look was like a big neon sign that announced Kuroko's own feeling for the red head.

Kuroko really did have a crush on Kagami Taiga.

Kuroko blushed inwardly while fighting the warmth that was suddenly trying to creep on his face, and he did a pretty damn good job too, because his outward expression didn't change at all.

"Do not make a scene, please. And it is a bit late to shout now, you know," Kuroko responded to Kagami's words evenly, which seemed to irk Kagami somehow.

Kagami whipped his head around to face the bluenet so fast Kuroko thought the boy almost broke his neck. "How can you act like it was a normal thing?!" he confronted, looking slightly indignant.

Kuroko raised his eyebrow lightly while glancing up at Kagami, slightly puzzled. "It wasn't?"

Kagami made an undignified noise at that, almost bristling. "But they…! I meant, they treated Koganei-senpai like… like…!" he seemed to have difficulties in pronouncing the word, so Kuroko helped, guessing what Kagami had in thought regarding the cosplay and the mascot thing.

"A 'human' _pet_?"

Kagami groaned and covered face which was reddening beyond belief. "I don't know how you can say such a vulgar shameful word without breaking a sweat…!" then he whimpered for the lack of vocabularies that could be used to describe his action, half moaning and half grumbling.

"But, Koganei-senpai is very dear and loved unconditionally by his friends," Kuroko set a small smile at the warm thought.

"Oh, I bet there is _more than friendly_ love in their mind…!" Kagami let out a slightly repulsed burp.

"Don't worry. Mitobe-senpai will always walk after Koganei-senpai," Kuroko reached out and tapped Kagami's arm reassuringly. Kagami was so sweet for being concerned about his senior's well being too. Somehow, it added the 'cute' point in his already endearing character.

"I very much hope so," Kagami muttered under his breath at that, still wincing rather awkwardly at the idea of making a classmate a plaything.

Both Kuroko and Kagami kept walking on the corridor on the third floor aimlessly since they still had an hour to kill before they had to gather for their class' play, intending to check random classes' presentations, before three familiar faces showed up from the direction of the stairs.

"Ugh…" Kagami instantly groaned despondently, his right eye twitching badly as a tall tan guy with dark blue hair and midnight eyes met their gaze, smirking when noticing both Kuroko and Kagami's presence.

"Ah, Aomine-kun (and friends)," Kuroko of course immediately recognized Aomine Daiki in all his glory (Touou's spring uniform), since he was his former light and quite stood out with that height and that hair color, and—

"Aww, it's Tetsu-kuuuuuuuun!"

 _Yeah, her_ ; Aomine's childhood friend, a bubbly pink haired girl that claimed to love Kuroko very much, Momoi Satsuki.

Momoi immediately rushed ahead to Kuroko and Kagami's direction and tackled Kuroko in a big hug. "Kyaaaah! Tetsu-kun, so cuuuuuute~!" and she acted pretty much like Kise to Kuroko's hidden despair (obviously because he couldn't hit a girl to stop her from molesting him in public).

It was seriously uncomfortable to be embraced so blatantly like that where everyone could see. She even rubbed Kuroko's cheek with her own and Momoi was absolutely giddy when she poured out compliments like how 'pretty (the dress was)' and how 'beautiful (the get up was)' and how (generally) 'stunning' Kuroko was.

"As expected of Tetsu-kun in a dress! No girl can even compare! Aaaaah! Tetsu-kun, you make such amazing princess!" and she didn't seem about to stop anytime soon with the crushing hug, almost choking Kuroko's neck in the midst of her excitement.

Kuroko heaved out a long, deep sigh while trying to keep the gropes at bay. He just wished Momoi could control herself more.

"Hey, quit it, will you! He's suffocating!" Kagami apparently tried to help Kuroko, but then Momoi glanced at him briefly before she squealed lightly in sparkling eyes and wide grin.

"Kyaaah! Kagamin, you look very cool like a real prince!" and so Momoi exclaimed by hugging Kagami instead of Kuroko _now_.

"Eeekh!" Kagami turned beet-red at that while Kuroko exhaled quietly in relief for being released from Momoi's clutch.

"Yo, Tetsu."

Okay, now Kuroko had to deal with his other troublesome old friend from GoM after the said friend caught up. "Aomine-kun," Kuroko nodded at the taller teen and he moved his gaze at another companion that he missed the first time because he stood behind the dark-blue haired teen. "Good afternoon, Sakurai-san," he smiled slightly seeing the older light-brown haired boy who flinched slightly at his greeting.

"G-good-, good afternoon, Kuroko-kun! S-sorry to suddenly stop by without invitation!" Sakurai bowed deeply at him, looking completely jittery and nervous.

"This is an open festival. You do not have to be invited to visit," Kuroko said, feeling the need to explain because he seriously didn't understand why Sakurai was apologizing for something that wasn't his fault.

"O-oh, that's r-right…" Sakurai blushed bashfully, looking down at the ground. "K-Kuroko-kun looks very be-beautiful with that dress," he complimented with a timid smile.

"Well, it does not mean I am happy wearing this," Kuroko said nonchalantly and Sakurai instantly paled at that.

"I-I-I'm so sorry! I'm sorry for not being sensitive to your feelings! I'm sorry for not thinking before speaking! I'm sorry I'm even heeere!"

Kuroko almost chuckled. The way Sakurai panicked and apologized was truly amusing. He really lived for his name… _Apologizing Mushroom,_ courtesy of Hyuuga Junpei, at least Kuroko could see something worth over cross-dressing as a princess.

"Sakurai, will you shut up already?" Aomine shoved the shorter boy away as he was back in Kuroko's line of vision. "Tetsu, you really nail the dress. No one can actually tell that you are a guy like that. Hell, even I thought you were a genuine girl," Aomine grinned at Kuroko, apparently pretty pleased with what he saw.

"I will take that as a compliment, Aomine-kun, even though it sounds offensive," Kuroko retorted dryly.

"Hey! It's a total flatter!" Aomine protested with a teasing laugh. "Though…" then he leered down on Kuroko's chest part. "It would be even more wonderful if you stuffed more things here." As insolent as usual, he actually put his palms on the big ribbon that covered Kuroko's supposedly breast.

Kagami was stone-cracked at the indecent sight, while Momoi dropped her jaw in wide eyes before she gaped like a fish out of water and Sakurai squeaked in horror.

Meanwhile, Kuroko was…well, for a second, he thought his consciousness darkened, followed slowly by an image of pure red as his subconscious took over. Thus before he knew it, he had muttered, " _Ignite punch kai_."

_WHAM!_

Yep. Kuroko's fist actually moved on its own accord like a defense mechanism to give a lethal attack straight to Aomine's gut.

It happened so fast that no one could stop it or say anything until after Aomine collapsed on the ground, crouching and holding his stomach while groaning agonizingly like he was dying as Kuroko was looking down on Aomine with dark aura dancing around his body frighteningly, his right fist clenched with smoke floating around the slightly red knuckles.

"Know your place, please?" Kuroko spoke in painfully polite flat tone (didn't even raise his voice volume), but people around him set a horrified look and were slowly inching away, paling like a day moon, so he guessed he couldn't suppress his annoyance (fury) quite well. Maybe his eyes shone sharply like he was entering _the zone_ or something.

"Da-… Dai-chan you PERVERT! CRIMINAL! IDIOOOOT! How could youuuuuu!?" Seconds later, Momoi, after she seemed to snap out of her mortification, added the injury by slapping the still crouching Aomine's head repeatedly and viciously berating the poor tanned guy without mercy.

"Hiiiiih! I-I-I'm sorry for not stopping Aomine-san! I'm sorry! I'm very sorry for being so slow! B-but… pl-please don't kill him!" Sakurai was literally sobbing with completely tearful, terrified face seeing the horrendous violence unraveling in front of him.

Kagami's face was still sketchy, his body shaking severely while slowly muttering, "Remind me not to make Kuroko angry…! I just saw _another Akashi_ and heard his psychotic voice here…!" He undoubtedly looked rather traumatized, but Kuroko just huffed softly as he stroked his slightly stung fist.

Kuroko just realized that hitting another person so hard wasn't good for his delicate hand.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Ah, Muro-chin, look, look," Murasakibara looked like he was in heaven when he pulled Himuro's wrist to the direction of a candy vendor just outside the Seirin High main building. "It has rainbow colored cotton candy~."

Yep, his eyes were officially sparkling like the stars on the amethyst sky.

Himuro let out a sigh while shaking his head slightly as he was dragged along by the larger childish teen. He had thought that Murasakibara was quite fired up after he received and saw the flyer of Kuroko's class play earlier at the gate, but somehow, the violet haired boy's concentration was immediately distracted at the first sight of a food vendor that sold Takoyaki.

"Slow down, Atsushi," Himuro reprimanded lightly, but he couldn't help an amused smile showing on his face because Murasakibara was very endearing when he was acting like that, like a little child finding a castle made from sweets.

 _That's probably Atsushi's biggest dream… living in a candy palace—_ Himuro chuckled at his thought.

"Ooh, this seems very delicious~," Murasakibara actually moaned in bliss there, and Himuro could almost see the drool pooling in the larger boy's mouth as Murasakibara willfully ogled the seller who looked extremely nervous while he was making the candy.

"Okay, buy as much sweets as you want, but just for today, alright?" Himuro ruffled Murasakibara's hair while smiling at him sweetly.

"Muro-chin, do you want some cotton candy too?" Murasakibara asked, offering a plush of cotton candy in front of Himuro's face after he purchase enormous amount of it to the seller's shock.

Himuro blinked once before gazing upward at the younger boy curiously. "I can have it?" he barely believed that Murasakibara was sharing his precious snack.

"If it's Muro-chin, I don't mind," Murasakibara smiled contently and for a moment Himuro thought he saw a pair of white wings behind his back while imaginary purple flowers sprouting around him.

 _S-so adorable…!_ —Himuro couldn't help squeezing his chest in reaction to that look. Seriously, Murasakibara looked very cute like that and Himuro's face was heating, his heartbeat increasing its pace in reaction.

"Muro-chin?" Murasakibara seemed confused because Himuro was silent for too long.

"No, well…" Himuro glanced back at Murasakibara before smiling rather sheepishly for acting odd. "Then, I'll have some," he said before opening his mouth and took a bite on the candy in Murasakibra's hand.

It was too sweet and it hurt Himuro's teeth, but the look of awe and astonishment in Murasakibara's face as he ate it was worth it.

"Muro-chin… looks _delicious_ ," Murasakibara lowered his slightly dazed gaze on Himuro's lips as he licked his own and Himuro almost blushed at the vague implication.

 _Eh?_ —for a brief second, Himuro thought he had entered a twilight zone. _Eeeeeeeh?!_

Yes, Himuro was slightly freaking out. "T-the candy _is_ very sweet. Delicious, indeed," he replied slowly, trying to act calm, despite a corn size of sweat that trickled down his slightly flushing cheek.

Please don't judge. He just wanted to play in the safe area and that look Murasakibara was giving Himuro was nowhere near safe, bordering into _dangerous_ , okay? Murasakibara looked extraordinarily sexy when he combed his shoulder-length hair back slightly, revealing his nice forehead and deep amethyst eyes more appreciably and Himuro's heart was doing a rock and roll here!

Murasakibara was silent for a moment before a slight smirk bloomed on his usually slothful face, making Himuro's heart thud even harder against the ribcage because _damn it!_ That look was absolutely Adonis! Hyperbolic, he knew. But Himuro just couldn't help it. Murasakibara was just that hot when he wanted to be.

"Muro-chin is surprisingly innocent, so cute," Murasakibara commented, still definitely amused, and Himuro wanted to _correct_ that the cute one there was Murasakibara and not him. _At. All._ Murasakibara just didn't know what Himuro wanted to do _to him_ or _with him_.

Himuro coughed slightly and cleared his throat to will his flush down a notch more. "Alright, let's go inside," he said, because he didn't know what he would do if they continued that embarrassing charade. After all, they were in a very public area. The least Himuro could do was bringing them to a more secluded place if they wanted to continue flirting.

Well, it was flirting… but Murasakibara didn't seem to realize that fact and Himuro wasn't exactly keen to break the news.

 _I wonder if Atsushi remembers why we are in Seirin in the first place… since we're supposed to look for Taiga and Kuroko-kun to… stop the drama or something. Honestly, I don't really get it. But I don't think it's a good idea to let Atsushi recall it. So...—_ Himuro shrugged. What Murasakibara forgot couldn't hurt _them_. He smiled to himself then.

"Do you think there are more sweets inside?" Murasakibara was practically back to his juvenile expectation of more _snacks_ as they entered the building.

"Oh, I so hope so," Himuro smiled to the taller teen kindly now.

 _Good thing there are a lot of cafés too inside—_ was definitely on Himuro's mind as he read the fancy black board that listed all the stands and presentations of each class in the building.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Ugh… my internal organs…! Tetsu, you-violent bastard! You didn't have to hit me that hard…!" Aomine was still glowering painfully and sullenly as he walked beside the silent Kuroko who was suspiciously flexing his right hand.

"If I were Kuroko, I'd have thrown you out of the window, you sick _ganguro_ ," Kagami was growling from Kuroko's other side and scathingly glared at Aomine. Momoi was still fuming unmercifully from behind as Sakurai was trying his best to calm the murderous feeling emanating from the Touou basketball club manager.

Aomine totally ignored Momoi and Sakurai (against his better judgment) as he smirked sardonically at Kagami. "What is it, little Kagami got jealous?"

Some veins of infuriation popped out of Kagami's temple. "Who the hell are you calling little?!" he roared then, definitely irate and Aomine took a great pleasure in seeing the defensive attitude. Though, the thing Kagami was cynical about wasn't what Aomine had in mind.

"Maybe Aomine-kun wants another ignite punch kai. Should I give one on your face this time?" Kuroko dutifully offered, still flexing his hand to form another fist and Aomine immediately moved several steps away while staring at that dangerous hand warily.

Kuroko could really punch with that hand after all.

"Alright, it was my bad," Aomine grunted scratching the back of his neck languidly. "I just didn't expect that Tetsu would look so… _breathtaking_ in a dress, you see. Couldn't help myself," he glanced while giving his ex-shadow a lazy sexy smile.

Kuroko blinked once before glancing back at Aomine, and then averted his gaze down, actually looking shy even though his expression didn't change much. It was honestly appealing. He also noticed the way Kagami narrowed his eyes at Kuroko and then at Aomine in disbelief written all over his face.

"Also, I heard that you didn't quite appreciate the get up, so…" Aomine smirked again, more evilly now, totally plotting because like hell if he would let Kuroko be devoured by that Bakagami on stage just because Kuroko looked extremely alluring with that long princess' dress.

Aomine stopped abruptly before he reached out his hand to grab Kuroko's smaller wrist, pulling the teal haired boy closer in a quick embrace to Kuroko and everyone else's surprise. A second later, he bent before lifting Kuroko's body like a bride without warning. "I'll rescue you by taking you away!" he exclaimed and grinned roguishly as he started running, leaving the still flabbergasted viewers behind.

Some seconds later…

"AAAAAAAAAAH!" As soon as Aomine turned at the junction, Kagami's loud distressed howl echoed in the hall way. "Kuroko's been _snatched away_! Wait the fuck up, AOMINEEEE! You-thieving bastard! Get back heeeere!"

Oh yes, Aomine could definitely feel that Kagami was frantically running after him (and Kuroko in his arms) even though Aomine kept facing ahead and ran as fast as he could without breaking down his speed or looking behind. Well, if the racket that followed after his steps was any indication, that is.

Also, Aomine could hear Momoi's wrathful scream in the background. He was definitely being hunted.

"Aomine-kun…" Kuroko mumbled slowly while looking upward from his position, and Aomine looked down in response. The bluenet's face was slightly closer to Aomine's, and Kuroko looked at him with such intense look, which didn't resemble anger or annoyance. He looked… intrigued? Aomine wasn't sure because Kuroko was hard to read as usual.

Though, being stared at with such eyes, Aomine felt rather self-conscious now. He needed to dissolve the tension, somehow…"Even you weight like a girl, Tetsu," he grinned and _wow_ , Kuroko's cheek turned slightly pink at that. He looked mighty cute!

"Then… we should go further to avoid getting caught," Kuroko pointed at a certain direction which was free from passerby, like a hidden corridor or something. Wait, did Kuroko actually want to run away with Aomine? "Just the two of us," he continued, looking at Aomine's eyes again with a strange glint of teasing? As if he could read Aomine's mind…

Aomine couldn't help widening his eyes as the heat rushed up instantly on his cheeks. _Oh, my fucking hell! Is he serious?!_

Well, who was Aomine Daiki to turn down an invitation like that, especially from Kuroko Tetsuya?

Aomine speeded up his legs and in record time, they entered the secluded hallway and Kuroko pointed to a certain door which led them to a dim-lit room, probably unused classroom or something? He let Kuroko down slowly after he closed the door before he started to look around the place.

It was rather hard to see because of the numerous black colored curtains around spread irregularly creating separated spaces in the room, and those same curtains blocked the sunlight from entering the window. "What is this place?" Aomine asked, trying to calm down his erratic heartbeat because Kuroko was actually encouraging him.

 _Is… is this some kind of a-… a date?_ —Aomine couldn't help thinking, slightly curious and rather hopeful.

"Aomine-kun," Kuroko called, earning him Aomine's immediate attention. He gave him a small smile then, making Aomine's heartbeat spike up. "This way," he said before he disappeared behind one of the curtain.

 _Oh, Tetsu wants to play a game?_ —Aomine widened his grin, definitely challenged by the _evidently_ playful gesture.

"Wait, Tetsu!" Aomine eagerly followed, opening the curtain and looked around to pursue Kuroko's path in the maze-like zone. It had been awhile since they played like this, and with Kuroko's misdirection, it would be a very interesting game.

"In here," Kuroko's voice came from some meters ahead, and Aomine saw the cross-dressing boy walk behind another curtain as he ran to catch up.

It was kind of fun, like playing tag with just two people, and Aomine was having a very good time tracking down Kuroko that he lost himself in the chase, not exactly paying attention to where he went, and definitely missing the surrounding except for the dark colored curtains.

" _In here."_

Aomine definitely heard the voice behind that dark red curtain just two meters to the front, and so he unsuspectingly opened the fabric only to be greeted by—

_Eh—!?_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kagami was rushing to turn at the junction and was too aggravated to see where he went as he suddenly bumped into another person's hard body. "Ow!"

Both people yelped in slight pain and surprise and would have fallen down if not for their good reflex in catching their balance. Kagami was in the verge of yelling to the stranger to get the hell out of his way because he was in a hurry when his eyes recognized the face of the slightly taller person in front of him.

"Kagami?" Kiyoshi blinked twice at the red head, his robe fluttering slowly as the wind from the window breezed inside.

"Ki—?!" Kagami paled slightly as he noticed his senior's obvious get up with those fangs and medieval clothes. "A vampire!?" he stepped back, forming a cross with his arms in alarm.

Kiyoshi laughed slightly at that. "That's a very interesting reaction, Kagami," he said, his tone filled with humor.

"Oh, right… Kiyoshi-senpai's class presents a haunted house…" Kagami just realized that as he remembered what Kuroko told him about what the seniors planed to do in the festival since he wasn't there when the ideas were revealed.

Well, Kagami couldn't help it. It was like a reflex if you saw an _inhuman_ creature in front of you. Kagami was just being extra careful because vampire was a deadly immortal—

Hold it! Kagami wasn't scared, okay?! He was just cautious! At least, that was what Kagami convinced himself to believe.

"What's with the rush? You know you can't run in the corridor, right? It's dangerous when people are milling around as well," Kiyoshi's smile and tone were kind and calm as always, even though he was supposed to reprimand his junior more.

"Ah!" then Kagami remembered why he ran in the first place. "That's right! Kuroko is _kidnapped_!" he shouted heatedly. "That bastard Ahomine! How dare he!? I don't know what he was thinking, but taking Kuroko like that in the middle of a hallway full of people—!"

Suddenly Kagami felt the dread rising. "What if that super idiot wants to do something inappropriate to Kuroko?!" Kagami couldn't help shouting, and the thought that his partner was possibly being touched by another _guy_ against his will made Kagami's skin crawl unpleasantly.

"Kagamin! Did you find Dai-chan and Tetsu-kun?!" Momoi caught up to him a few seconds later, panting hard and labored.

"Crap! I lost them!" Kagami held the sides of his head with both hands in frenzy, starting to panic for real.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I can't find them either! I'm sorry for not running fast enough! I'm sorry for being so useless!" Well, at least the Apologizing Mushroom that came a second later was even more hysterical than Kagami was. But really, he wasn't helping at all!

"Wait, wait a sec, all of you. What happened?" Kiyoshi looked concerned as he saw the chaotic mood in Kagami, Sakurai and Momoi's act.

"Ah, senpai… it's that Ahomine and his tendency to act like a lunatic! He actually kidnapped Kuroko! We have to find them before something _bad_ happens!" Kagami hollered earnestly.

"Calm d—"

" _GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"_

"—own…?"

Kiyoshi, Kagami, Momoi and Sakurai jerked and widened their eyes in shock as a horror-filled, earsplitting (un)manly scream tore the air from the room beside where Kiyoshi stood.

…?!

…?

…!

"I-is… is Class 3B haunted house really _that_ scary?" Kagami asked, totally dumbstruck while paling and sweating bullets as he tried to see what the deal with the class near them was.

"It's actually a mystery house. Well, in my opinion, it's more mysterious than scary, but… that was one hell of incredible scream, just now. I wonder what happened inside…" Kiyoshi tilted his head aside, looking mildly puzzled and curious as he also stared at the class door.

"That voice…! That was Dai-chan!" Momoi exclaimed in realization.

"E-eeh? I-I'm sorry for asking, but… why is Aomine-san doing in there?" Sakurai seemed bewildered.

"It is a _game_."

Kagami jumped at least almost a meter and yelped in fright at the familiar voice that was suddenly heard just behind him. He turned around in lightening speed before pointing while screeching accusingly. "For the Lord's sake, Kuroko! I told you to stop scaring me like that!"

"Tetsu-kun!"

"Ku-Kuroko-kun?!"

Momoi instantly surged forward to hug the princess clothed blue haired boy. "You're alright, Tetsu-kun~! Thank God…! Sheesh, stupid Dai-chan for suddenly snatching you away like that…!"

Sakurai let out a long slightly relieved sigh, while Kiyoshi looked obliviously perplexed, and now did Kagami blink in surprise as well, realizing that Momoi was correct. Kuroko had come back without so much a scratch on his appearance.

"How did you…? I meant, what about Aomine...?" Still, Kagami couldn't help asking, rather stunned.

"Do not fuss, Kagami-kun. Aomine-kun is happily playing a game with the guys in Kiyoshi-senpai's class," Kuroko said with a glint of mischief in his clear sky-blue eyes.

Another (almost) inhuman shriek –which suspiciously sounded a lot like a terrified cry from none other than Aomine Daiki– ripped out from the classroom deafeningly again, this time shocking every passerby that passed in front of it.

Kagami paled slightly as he gaped more at the darkened room. "Suddenly I feel very sorry for him…" Indeed, that was how he felt at that moment despite his initial resentment for his mortal rival.

"Oh, it is just a reward for calling me _a girl_ repeatedly in the span of ten minutes," Kuroko let out an easy tiny smile which didn't reach his eyes at all. Kagami even could almost see the imaginary black fire surrounding the boy's form. Of course, Kuroko was definitely (coldly) enraged.

"Just remind me again not to piss you off…" Kagami uneasily prayed that he would never _ever_ be at the wits end of Kuroko's wrath which was probably scarier than Akashi's.

"Kuroko, are you alright?" Kiyoshi joined in the conversation as soon as the situation was relatively quieter and under control. At least there was no more nutty screech from the class 3B's mystery house.

Kagami marveled if Aomine was still alive in there…

"Yes, Kiyoshi-senpai, thank you very much for your inadvertent aid even though you probably do not know what I am talking about," Kuroko bowed politely at his taller senior that dressed like a handsome Dracula and then he spoke to Momoi and Sakurai for a moment, apparently appeasing their concern, before he turned back to face Kagami, who winced slightly, still not knowing exactly how to react to all of this stupidity.

Kuroko was staring at Kagami intently for awhile until Kagami felt disturbed. "What?" Kagami asked, rather uneasy with such level of fixed gaze from his silent precious partner… best friend, and maybe more than that to Kagami, but he still wasn't sure yet.

"Were you worried?" Kuroko asked softly and Kagami's cheeks instantaneously steamed in reaction.

"I-idiot! Who was worried? I knew you could deal with Aomine just fine, and it was _that_ _Ahomine_. As hotheaded as he was most of the time, even he wouldn't be reckless enough to physically hurt you," Kagami averted his eyes from Kuroko while scowling, slightly hating the overwhelming urge to give Kuroko a hug just to make sure that he was really there and alright and wouldn't be taken away again.

Kagami was so going to kick Aomine's ass after all of this was over.

"Oh, but you seemed to be quite in panic earlier…" Kuroko's eyes were definitely laughing as he said that, even though his facial expression was stuck in default nonexistent.

Kagami could feel his face officially burn now. "You were watching the entire time?!" he shouted indignantly at Kuroko's bad hobby. Seriously! It was so very infuriating!

My GOD, Kagami just wanted to bury himself as he evoked what kind of things he had spoken out unconsciously in his distraught mood earlier.

Kuroko actually chuckled slightly before he reached out to grab Kagami's hand. "That is alright, Kagami-kun. The princess will not leave the prince that easily," he said, squeezing a little, and Kagami was caught off guard at the sensation of being ignited from Kuroko's touch.

The warmth literally spread to Kagami's body like wildfire and Kagami was sure his face was very hilarious then, because Kiyoshi grinned widely, Momoi giggled and Sakurai made a choked noise in his poor attempt to conceal his slight amusement.

Kagami just considered that covering his still reddening face with his other palm was very tempting, while Kuroko just looked at him with such content expression.

* * *

**Status**

Second attempt: _failed._

Countermeasure: _sweet stands & haunted house._

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Meanwhile, at a main gate of Seirin High…

A red haired boy in Rakuzan's spring uniform and a taller raven in the same outfit were entering the festival area where people greeted them with cheer and enthusiastic offer to visit their classes and to check out their stands. Although, they were pretty much ignored since the two kept walking towards the main building without any stop or detour.

"Wow, Seirin is pretty nice and big," the raven, Mibuchi Reo, said while whistling slightly admiring pristine buildings in front of them.

"New school, new buildings, it is expected," the smaller teen in front of him replied nonchalantly, almost in cold tone, but Mibuchi knew that Akashi had his own interest in this new school.

After all, the Rakuzan basketball captain had taken a day off from practice only to come here. Festival or not, it was still surprising. Though, Mibuchi was kind of doubtful of Akashi's motive.

"Um, Sei-chan… why are we here, exactly? I haven't yet heard the detail of your plan in… uh, disrupting this certain play you keep musing about the past three days…" Mibuchi tentatively asked.

"I actually want to torch the place down, but it's kind of complicated, and the risk isn't worth it, so I have to play a little more subtly," Akashi said the terrorizing idea with an attitude of speaking about the weather and Mibuchi couldn't help thinking if Akashi was psychotic all over again.

Mibuchi still thought that Akashi intending to gauge his own eyes for losing a basketball match was _insane_ , after all.

"So I've come to a very peaceful plan instead," Akashi continued and Mibuchi let out a breath he was holding for awhile now, in fear of testing Akashi's patience.

"Oh, a peaceful idea sounds nice," Mibuchi approved readily.

"I should just take over their student council and festival committee to dismiss the event early," Akashi smirked devilishly and Mibuchi paled.

 _Sei-chan, that's not peaceful at aaaaall!_ —Mibuchi inwardly cried and lamented over his stupidity to actually consider Akashi to produce a _normal_ plan from his abnormal brain.

"Come on. Let's go to the student council's office." Akashi turned to look at the board sign which showed them which rooms were where.

"Sei-chan, wait! Are you serious?" Mibuchi was rather frantic now. He couldn't possibly let Akashi ruin a school event, could he?!

"Of course I am. You know I never joked around before," Akashi glanced at Mibuchi with an easy smile on his face.

"But—!"

"You have a problem with my plan?" Akashi raised his eyebrow lightly and Mibuchi winced at that 'don't you dare to defy me or else' look.

"N-no…" Mibuchi sighed weakly again in resignation. He couldn't possibly stop Akashi alone. Aaa! He wished Hayama and Nebuya were there, so at least they could help each other trying to stop Akashi for committing a _crime_ in other people's school!

"Then, let's go."

Mibuchi could only pray that Seirin was tough enough to defend themselves against Akashi Seijuurou's devious plan to turn their festival event into havoc….

**End of Chapter 7**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *loool* Sorry for the craziness. Oh Aomine… *dies laughing* Wonder what happened to him? *evil smirk*. Such evil Kuroko is very interesting to make! XDD Oh, and I manage to bring up Mukkun and Muro-chin~ also Akashi and Mibuchi~! Though there will be another exciting plan in the next chapter! What do you think? I hope you aren't bored with how slow this story progressed. So, care to drop a comment or two? *winks*


	8. The Unexpected Situation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which something unexpected happens and every pair is being lovey-dovey with each other too much...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sheesh, I'm dead tired… after giving a big presentation to my colleagues for the first time after the long absence… Well, at least I could update this! *grins* Now, thanks for all the wonderful reviews, faves and alerts again~ Oh, how happy I am every time I read them *punyaaan*  
> Alight! Now is time for new chapter! ENJOY!  
>  **Disclaimer and Warning: See chapter 1! Add bizarreness in it as well *looool***

  
**Chapter 8:** _**The Unexpected Situation** _  


* * *

Sasaki was humming happily as she, Ayasaki and the other girls from Class 2B did the final check up on the properties they would use in the play. Some of the boys were littering around the changing room to put on their costumes and do the final adjustment to the accessories on them.

"Where are Kuroko-kun and Kagami-kun?" Tamaki, the script-writer poked her head between the light brown curtain that divided the room into two, one for preparation, one for dressing spaces.

"They are not here yet, still on break after the promotion," Ayasaki replied while balancing the background board for the palace grand ball image.

"It's fine. They are already in their costumes anyway. We can fix their makeup and clothes before they go on stage later," Sasaki was still humming (and swaying), feeling extraordinarily excited despite the lack of sleep she had gone through the night before. After all, she was the producer and the head of committee for the class drama play. Of course she had to make sure that everything would run smoothly. Losing sleep a day or two didn't matter for her.

"Oh, okay, I just want to do the last minute correction for the dialogues in act 5. I'm thinking there should be more complication here, like a 'competitor' or some short," Tamaki mumbled, opening the script before putting a scratch on some of the dialogues.

"Wait, there will be a competitor? For whom, Prince Taiga or Princess Kuroko?" one of the girl seemed to hear Tamaki's low murmur and raised her eyebrow high. Well, it couldn't be helped since originally, there was no plan to bring up any competitor in the play.

"For Princess Kuroko. I added an official fiancée for Prince Taiga. Well, she wouldn't be on stage, though. Just the name would come up, and Princess Kuroko will be pretty upset about it," Tamaki grinned. "Won't it be funny if Prince Taiga tries to comfort Princess Kuroko?" her smile turned rather mischievous at the end and Sasaki squealed at her.

"That's ingenious, Tamaki-chan! Aaaah, as expected of the professional script-writer wannabe!"

Ayasaki couldn't help laughing as well. "It will be very funny, indeed!" and she continued cackling like a mad girl.

The other girls giggled eagerly and the boys just looked very sorry for the two leading roles of their class-play, despite their own amusement.

"Heeey, I'll put the lunch for everybody here!" A voice near the entryway of the changing room notified the occupants inside.

"Yeees! Thanks for the hard work!" one of the girls took a look at the door, but the person who delivered their foods and drinks were not there. "Huh? I haven't given the lunch money, though…" she looked puzzled as she checked the big trays filled with breads, snacks, onigiris and many cups of drinks.

"Oh, that's thoughtful. The foods and drinks have been separated for the players and for us," another girl that passed by the first one smiled gratefully.

"Yes," the first girl also smiled, noticing that too. "I guess we can eat now and let the players eat later." She seemed satisfied as she took one of the breads for herself.

Unknown to the still busy girls and guys in the changing room, a wavy long haired blond girl smirked shrewdly peeking through the gap between the door and its frame.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Furihata Kouki's mouth fell open.

Why, do you ask? Well… he, _never in his wildest dream_ , had ever thought that he would be greeted so blatantly… by one of GoM members, especially _not_ by the great Teikou basketball group's ex-captain, Akashi Seijuurou.

Furihata continued gaping as Akashi asked, "Is this Student Council office?"

Then the shorter boy almost hyperventilated when those tantalizing dichromatic eyes focused on Furihata's dark chocolate ones. Oh, and don't forget that Furihata also felt like fainting when Akashi raised his eyebrows slightly, seeming to recognize him.

Fukuda dropped the whiteboard marker he was holding before he could write down something on the board, looking equally shocked and speechless as Furihata.

Furihata and Fukuda got a duty to take notes of the complaints and problems that happened during the festival and then later to report them to the student council president. However, since it was lunch time now, most of the student council administrators were on break, leaving the two second years alone in the office.

"Huh, it's surprisingly vacant," another voice came up behind Akashi and someone with dark hair that Furihata (and Fukuda) recognized as one of the Crownless Kings of Rakuzan, Mibuchi Reo, stepped inside the room. The tall, dark haired teen immediately saw both Furihata and Fukuda before he smiled. "Good afternoon," he greeted politely.

Furihata almost jumped, totally flinching and Fukuda stepped back as if it was a reflex.

"W-w-w-w-why… why a-a-a-re you guys…here?" and yes, Furihata couldn't help stuttering, face paling and body trembling a little as he found his voice (barely) again.

"Is that a problem that we're _here_? It's an open festival right?" Akashi pointed out haughtily.

Furihata shook his head madly. "I-I mean… here, in-in student council room…" he clarified tentatively, still inching away bit by bit as he noticed that Akashi was approaching him and Fukuda who was just a few feet away from his spot.

Akashi's mismatched eyes glinted slightly with a hint of amusement in his light smirk. "There's something I need to propose," he said confidently and Furihata noticed the way Mibuchi took a deep sigh and heaved out in resignation at Akashi's tone. "Where's the Student Council president?"

Akashi was getting closer, and Furihata got an overwhelming urge to bolt away before he could be in the redhead reach, but somehow… Akashi's rather creepy stare held him down in place, making him unable to move aside the strange shiver he could feel assaulting his body.

"K-Kaichou is on br-break!" Not good. Furihata's voice cracked slightly in sky-scraping pitch. He was totally tense and edgy as Akashi stopped a few inches away in front of him, looking down at him slightly from his higher point of view even though it was only 3 cm higher.

"I see… then I can just speak with you, right… Furihata Kouki-kun," Akashi's smile was somewhat gentle, but there was something about his voice that caused Furihata to cringe and he would have squeaked in fright had Fukuda not pulled him to widen the space between Akashi and Furihata.

"A-alright, if you find a problem in this festival, you can tell us," Fukuda said awkwardly and warily while Furihata was holding onto his own chest, his heart pounding erratically, and muttering in horror about how on earth Akashi knew his name at all, completely forgetting that he wore a nametag that could be easily read by Akashi. His palms and face were sweating while he stole glances at Akashi who deliberately shifted his gaze to Fukuda.

"Aren't you too tall?" Akashi asked pointedly, refusing to look upward to accommodate Fukuda's height. The poor taller teen winced before color drained from his face.

"H-have a seat please," Fukuda immediately bolted and sat on the sofa, looking anywhere but Akashi, completely shaken and terrified.

 _Scaryyyyy!_ —Furihata thought, feeling totally anxious for his friend's safety. Strangely though, it grew something akin to bravery as he thought he had to protect Fukuda at some point, so he stepped up and sat as well beside Fukuda.

"L-let's hear your problem, A-Akashi Seijuurou-san and M-Mibuchi Reo-san," Furihata said, gesturing to the both teens to sit as well.

Akashi smirked again, looking _oddly_ pleased now as he sat on the sofa. Mibuchi followed soon after, still setting that apologetic expression on his face.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Aomine was holding onto Kise's body, burying his face on the blond's nape awfully tightly, much to Kise's adorable perplexity and Kasamatsu's slight chagrin.

"Aomine-chi… People are staring…!" Kise mentioned when he noticed the whispering group around them, that were pretty hard to miss (despite Kise's disguise with sunglasses) since some were visibly giggling, some staring wide eyed, and some funnily gawking at the pair.

Kise looked very awkward, blushing slightly for being hugged like that. A tick of irritation was growing on Kasamatsu's head.

Aomine seemed to tighten his hold on Kise in reaction to his voice. Kasamatsu just couldn't help feeling snarky at that moment. "Who knew that Aomine Daiki of Touou is a hopeless case against _horror house_?"

Aomine instantly jerked upward and whipped his head around to face Kasamatsu at that remark, looking extra indignant and as he yelled, "I-I-I'm NOT scared of ghosts! Those things don't exist in reality!" as if he was trying to convince himself, voice still pretty much cracking after screaming bloody murder like a little girl in the mystery house earlier, oh, and he sounded so damned defensive bout it to boot.

Kasamatsu snorted. It was undeniably comical when he and Kise found the boy in the mystery house earlier.

_**Twenty minutes before—** _

" _S-senpai…! Why are we in the haunted house?" Kise sobbed lightly, squeezing Kasamatsu's arm rather strongly and jumping at the smallest sound as they arrived at a strange space surrounded by black curtain under the darkened purple light._

_There was a manmade well and Kise squeaked when they heard a crying voice coming out from inside the well._

" _It's a mystery house," Kasamatsu replied nonchalantly, distractedly musing if a student hid inside the well to surprise them later._

" _And it's any different how?" Kise's tone pitched up slightly, seeming to try his best not to cry even though he was in the verge of tears._

" _Really, it's just a fake, Kise. What are you afraid of?" Kasamatsu glanced sideway at the taller teen, rather fondly exasperated at the way the blond clung to him for such ridiculous reason._

" _It's dark. It's humidly cold with all the dry ice. I don't like the scary background sounds and people are trying to scare us here, senpai! I'm not a horror mania!" Kise sniffed pitifully._

_Suddenly Kasamatsu felt like teasing Kise for it. "Are you acting like a girl on purpose?" It was maddening, but kind of cute as well in its own way._

" _What? No!" Kise looked slightly affronted at the accusation. "Senpai, you're just messing with me are—_

" _AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"_

"— _you?!" Kise yelped and blinked in surprise as a blur of over-tanned creature ran to his direction in the narrowed space while wailing wildly as if the world was in the brink of exploding. Furthermore, it jumped at Kise, causing the blond to screech as well in alarm._

" _Se-se-se-Snepai! Heeelp!"_

" _Kise!" Kasamatsu watched in horror as Kise was dragged away by the 'creature'._

" _GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" and the terror-stricken scream continued, added by Kise's piercing cry and Kasamatsu's shout as he was after them, it was totally chaotic._

_Kasamatsu honestly thought they would wreck the house with that atrocious running around stunt as he noticed the hoot from the hollow spaces around them as the 'ghosts', in this case people that tried to scare them, showed up one by one from behind the darkness._

_Any kind of interesting monsters from western country Kasamatsu could name of (scarecrow, Jason, Freddy Krueger, ghoul, etc) trembled slightly, apparently trying to stifle their hilarity. There was Frankenstein, dragging his feet approaching from behind as well. Some zombies (headless, one armed, stabbed and oozing fresh liquid in blood color) and some horrible animal hybrids…_

_Apparently, they just took some ideas from American movies. The makeup was more than good though, and the decoration was cool. The color of blood looked frightening in the dim lit room. Still, they were trying not to laugh for God's sake. Kasamatsu stared incredulously at the clear amusement those supposedly monsters showed._

_Still, when Kasamatsu realized that Kise and whoever had gotten him earlier were still there, howling and shrieking as if they were mad, Kasamatsu couldn't hold down his own chortle at the funny view._

_Couldn't blame the monsters for laughing, indeed…_

" _Eh, eh?! Wa-wait, huh? Please don't…! Gyaaa! What are you touching?!" Kise sounded panicked in red face, and Kasamatsu just couldn't help it, he doubled over on his spot, guffawing like a maniac._

" _Jeez, Senpai! Please stop laughing and help me here!"_

_In the midst of Kasamatsu's manic mirth, he could make out that Kise seemed to know his attacker, who was actually Aomine in his own terrified breakdown because he was chased after by fake monsters from underworld._

" _Pff—!"_

_~Please wait a moment until Kasamatsu was civilized enough to speak without choking from his own uproarious laughter~_

" _Sheesh, Aomine-chi you scared the crap out of me," Kise chopped Aomine's blue haired top lightly while huffing. Kasamatsu was still trying to smother his laugh into small chuckles, coughing and clearing his throat in the process, when Aomine was still obviously silently whimpering. It was seriously side-splitting. Kasamatsu's stomach hurt!_

" _Seriously, Aomine, the monsters are gone. Believe it or not, they were just worried because you screamed like a lunatic," Kasamatsu tried to hold down another snort, but it was rather futile because, let's face it. Aomine Daiki, the badass basketball genius, ace of Touou Academy… screaming like a overstressed baby, it deserved to be preserved in a portrait or a video._

_Damn. Kasamatsu should have brought his digital camera. It would be hilarious to upload it on you**be._

_Aomine still hadn't say anything. Apparently, he couldn't since he was still quite traumatized with all the horrible images the haunted house had evoked._

" _There, there, Aomine-chi, let's get out of here. This place creeps me out too," Kise patted Aomine's back twice compassionately, but Aomine didn't seem too inclined to let him go anytime soon. Kise looked upward at Kasamatsu who just shrugged (still inwardly laughing) at their antics._

**Back to current situation—**

"But, really, Aomine-chi, why were you inside a haunted house while you're obviously afraid of it?" Kise asked then, looking puzzled.

"I'm NOT scared of IT!" Aomine still insisted stubbornly, while trapping Kise's cheeks with his palm, squeezing the soft texture of Kise's rather feminine face hard and gritting his teeth, seeming very much frustrated.

"Ow, ow, ow! You're ruining my face, Aomine-chiiii!" Kise wept loudly like a child now, getting on Kasamatsu's nerves even more because both Aomine and Kise looked suspiciously intimate that way. How infuriating.

"Fine, whatever," Kasamatsu rolled his eyes, getting increasingly vexed at this point. "So, why were you there?"

Aomine outwardly froze and Kasamatsu and Kise raised their eyebrows in unison at the snubbed look Aomine made. "T-Tet-…!" he paused with a twitch, seeming to have a difficulty to talk about it. He made a constipated expression as well, making Kise huff out a small laugh.

"What is that face, Aomine-chi? You look horrendous," Kise declared in a child-like mocking manner and Aomine growled at him in aggravation.

"Shut up, Kise!" Aomine shouted, looking totally incensed while stretching Kise's cheeks, earning him another complaint from the blond. Then the tanned teen muttered darkly about a certain blue haired sadist he had to get back at and was about to chew inside his cheek when both Kise and Aomine's cell phone went off.

"Huh?" Kise blinked once while stroking his cheeks as Aomine released him. They took out their phones before looking at the screens and set a similar 'crap!' expression on their face.

"What?" Kasamatsu was intrigued.

"A text from Akashi/-chi…?" Aomine and Kise looked upward to gaze at each other in surprise.

"He summoned us, why?" Kise seemed wary, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek. Aomine shrugged, totally clueless.

"Shin-chan! There's a (class) vendor that sells strange trinkets here!"

Takao's keyed up exclaim was heard between the prowling students around a corner of a certain class at the third floor, just a few feet away from where Kasamatsu, Kise and Aomine stood.

"Takao! You said the previous one was the last to check out! We have to find Kagami and Kuroko, you know," a begrudged tone of Midorima scolded, complaining incessantly about wasting precious time on something unproductive.

"Eeh? But we _are_ looking for them. That's why we check the class one by one, right? The rice-cake in the cosplay café earlier was very delicious! The cat-maid was cute too!" Takao beamed, still pretty energetic as he showed up in front of Kasamatsu and friends, holding a very reluctant Midorima's wrist.

"That's just an excuse for you to never stop playing! Let go of my—" Midorima's voice was stuck in his throat as he looked up, meeting Kise's knowing (and very annoying) grin and Aomine's lazy look. "K-Kise, Aomine?!" his voice was a pitch higher than usual, and he looked very surprised.

"Oh! Kasamatsu-san! We meet again!" and Takao greeted Kasamatsu first as he noticed his party.

"In the end you guys ended up on a date, huh?" Kasamatsu commented dryly.

Takao was visibly ecstatic at the observation while Midorima squawked ungraciously. "We are certainly NOT on a date!" the bespectacled teen protested _hard_.

"My, my, Midorima-chi is flustered, how cute~!" Kise laughed playfully and Aomine stared funnily at the Shuutoku pair.

"You finally _shot_ him?" the blue haired teen asked Takao in incredulity.

"Ahaha, Shin-chan is very tsundere about it," and Takao obviously played along with all the teasing that made Midorima bristle even more.

"TAKAO!" yep, Midorima lost it alright, totally red in the face as he cursed his partner angrily (and very embarrassed, apparently).

"This is the usual chaos," Kasamatsu was so thankful he already graduated and was no longer responsible for those crazy GoM kids.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kagami and Kuroko accidentally met Murasakibara and Himuro when they were on their way to the Class 2B gathering after they promised to save some good seats for Kiyoshi and the other Seirin basketball members. Though, Kuroko was sure that only student council administrators (which in this case were Furihata and Fukuda) were allowed to reserve seats for anyone else.

"Ah, it's Kaga-chin and Kuro-chin," Murasakibara's eyes glinted slightly as he pointed at them.

"Geeeh!" Kagami recoiled instantly. "Why are you guys here?!" and he obscenely pointed at both Himuro and Murasakibara, his tone totally accusing.

"Wow, Taiga is really in a prince's suit," Himuro smiled mirthfully as he and Murasakibara approached them more closely. "Kuroko-kun looks very pretty in a dress too," he added as they were just a few feet away from the Seirin pair.

"Good afternoon, Himuro-san," Kuroko greeted politely, not minding the praise even though he was very uncomfortable being called pretty and beautiful repeatedly today. Kuroko looked upward at Murasakibara's towering figure as well and graced him with a small smile. "Murasakibara-kun."

"Kuro-chin~!" Murasakibara looked exceedingly happy as he reached Kuroko's side and suddenly lifted him up. "You look adorable, Kuro-chin, so fluffy and seems delicious," he continued, bringing Kuroko closely and started to sniff. "Smell sweet too."

Kagami looked beyond disturbed as he dropped his jaw in shock and Himuro narrowed his eyes at both Murasakibara and Kuroko, looking slightly discontented. Though, Kuroko was the one who wanted to kick Murasakibara on the stomach if he didn't drop it soon.

"Murasakibara-kun," Kuroko put his palm on Murasakibara's face to push him off. "Put me down, please. You are embarrassing me and yourself," he said monotonously, but his clench on Murasakibara's face should be painful enough because he used his full power to do so.

"Oumbh—" Murasakibara's muffled voice seemed to signal that he understood because he immediately put Kuroko down again. "That hurt, Kuro-chin," he pouted slightly like a five year old now, palming his own face sullenly.

"Good." Kuroko replied heartlessly.

Murasakibara sulked as Kuroko turned back to face Himuro and Kagami. "Ah, please do watch our class play in half an hour at the school great hall," he spoke to Himuro and the older man just sniffled a chuckle.

"You're pretty good at handling Atsushi," Himuro said as Kagami was still muttering that all GoM were perverts to some degrees.

"If you are used to their advance, you will feel nothing special about it," Kuroko replied emotionlessly, but that didn't mask the conspiratorial glint in his eyes.

"I should take notes," Himuro's smile turned slightly into a smirk that seemed to send chill down Kagami's spine.

"You guys… what are you up to so suddenly being friendly with each other?" Kagami asked dubiously. He was actually not as clueless as Kuroko thought before.

"Oh, a little bit this and that. Right, Kuroko-kun?" Himuro's smile never faltered. Kuroko respected him for his A-class form of poker face too now.

"Ah, I remembered," suddenly, Murasakibara punched his palm before turning to face Kagami, looking down at him from his giant height and appearing all serious.

"What?" Kagami asked, looking rather bemused while raising his split eyebrow.

Himuro made an 'uh-oh' expression and Kuroko detected a danger in the air before Murasakibara reached out to Kagami's collar, but the hand faltered mid grabbing it as his gazed landed on Kagami's breast pocket instead. Kuroko noticed the purple haired boy's pause and the end of his line of sight before he spoke. "That…what is that?" Murasakibara looked very curious.

"Oh, this?" Kagami looked downward at his pocket and took out a plastic of sakura fashioned rice cake. "Rice cake from Mitobe-senpai's class… you want some?" he offered the cake to Murasakibara then and the over-height teen immediately looked at him with sparkly eyes.

"I can have it?" Yes, Murasakibara looked like a child getting a new toy.

"Sure," and so Kagami unsuspectingly gave him the snack. Murasakibara looked happy and blissfully in contrast with his mood a few seconds ago as he thanked Kagami in small delight.

Kuroko was very proud of Kagami's gullible nature that could even tame the snack-monster Murasakibara. But really, Murasakibara was very easy to distract with munchies and it would never change until the end of century.

"Taiga will be a wonderful prince," Himuro chuckled and Kagami turned rather red when he seemed to hear the witty tone.

"Quit mocking already! Damn you, Tatsuya!" Kagami protested.

"He is very cute too," Kuroko nodded totally agreeing.

"Kuroko?!" Kagami turned a darker shed of crimson then, squeaking in surprise.

Murasakibara gave Kuroko a leveled stare and Kuroko noticed that Murasakibara was probably aware of his state of feeling. "Kagami-kun will not hurt me," he said surely answering Murasakibara's silent question.

"Then it's all good, but the others won't easily back down," Murasakibara said, a hint of warning in his tone.

"They will eventually," Kuroko looked down, smiling slightly at how lucky he was for being treated so dearly by his friends, even though they way they treasured him was a little bit questionable.

"What are you guys talking about?" Kagami looked extra mystified now but Kuroko just shook his head and Murasakibara shrugged unflappably. "Then let's get going. Or we'll be late and I don't want to be castrated by the girls in our class," the red head shuddered at the horrid image.

"Then, we will see you later at the play?" Himuro hoped.

"Will do," Kagami said before he grabbed Kuroko's hand and pulled him away. "Don't forget to vote for our class!" he reminded without turning back to look at Murasakibara and Himuro again.

"Certainly!" they heard Himuro's reply just fine though.

Kuroko looked at his and Kagami's joined hands, slightly amazed. He looked upward slightly at Kagami who was walking in front of him determinedly and didn't miss the taller boy's pink ears. Kuroko smiled fondly at that, feeling extra warm and happy because he was certain that what he said to Murasakibara earlier was true, that Kagami would never hurt him and would probably treasure him more than anyone else ever had.

**#**

Meanwhile, Murasakibara stared silently at the prince and princess pair with an unreadable expression and Himuro noticed that.

"Don't be so jealous. Taiga will cherish that precious ex-teammate of yours," Himuro commented, adding silently that Kagami might have loved Kuroko more than the GoM did because that was Kagami Taiga. Himuro knew him very well after all.

Murasakibara bent slightly to lean closely to Himuro's face and suddenly asked, "How about you, Muro-chin? Do you feel jealous as well?"

Himuro widened his eyes a fraction at that before smiling warmly. "Nope, I already have Atsushi to look after, right?" he answered without a slightest doubt in his mind.

Murasakibara blinked once, actually looking mildly surprised before a dopey happy smile bloomed on his face as well. "I'm glad then," he said and Himuro's heart skipped a beat once again seeing it.

 _So cute!_ —Himuro fought an urge to hug the taller younger teen for being so endearing and reached up to ruffle his slightly longer purple hair dotingly instead.

The warm moment was soon interrupted by a beeping sound from Murasakibara's pants pocket, though, and the purple haired teen fished his cell out to read the message, blinking twice as he did so.

"What's wrong?" Himuro asked curiously.

"A summon from Aka-chin… he said he's in the dressing room of the great hall and…needs our help?" Murasakibara didn't sound convinced with what he was reading.

"Eh?" Himuro could only wonder at that.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

**Ten minutes before at Student council…**

"What?" Furihata looked officially distraught at this point, while his dark haired friend… Fukuda gawped slightly, still in shock.

"Like I said, I want the student council to ban Class 2B from the play," Akashi repeated for the third time because both the brunet and the raven were very slow in understanding his words.

"Uh… why, _again_?" the shorter teen continued asking for the reason despite Akashi already saying it twice.

Akashi took a deep breath, minding his slowly thinning patience. "Have you seen the flyer? I deem that kind of pose and scenario inappropriate to be shown to public. Besides, what's the class thinking in putting all male players for women's roles? Don't you think some people might find it offensive? In reality, _I_ find it offensive, especially because Tetsuya is paired with that foolish buffoon," he narrowed his eyes slightly at that, feeling his irritation level increasing when he thought about his precious ex-teammate getting chummy with Kagami Taiga.

"Err… Sei-chan, that last line kinda ruins the previous plausible reason…" Mibuchi tried to remind him, but Akashi ignored him in favor of intimida- he meant, _convincing_ the student council guys to abide to his request.

"Uh… You do know that this is just _a play_ , right?" Fukuda seemed to find his voice again and slowly responded to him. "I meant… they're all just acts. There's nothing serious in it…."

"Of course it is serious when in the end, it can trigger certain feelings from certain someone to act on his undisclosed desire," Akashi retorted- he meant, _replied_ menacingly and Fukuda yelped slightly at the grave, dark tone and gaze Akashi sent his way.

"Uh, um…err… Akashi-san," Furihata quickly raised his hand before Akashi could _kill_ Fukuda with his scathing glare. "Um…" he gulped slightly as Akashi's sight moved to him again. Akashi raised his eyebrows, wondering what the shorter boy wanted to say. "Ah…e-even though we're in student council, we don't really have a say on something like that. I-I mean… We just take notes a-and the president is still at b-break, so… ah, and it's been finalized that the play will run as scheduled, and the-… the visitors are quite excited to see it, so it's impossible to cancel it without disappointing them and that… t-that…"

Akashi's mood was getting sourer by the second as Furihata kept rambling about reasons that didn't matter to him and he showed his displeasure quite clearly as Furihata's voice trembled and was getting quieter nearing the end.

"O-our school can't afford to disappoint the visitors because it's a mean to promote our school to potential new students!" Furihata seemed ready to pass out in terrified look when Akashi scrutinized him. "I-I'm sorry if it doesn't meet your expectation, but we really can't put your request above our school's purpose!"

Luckily though, Akashi did think that what Furihata said made sense. "Then I should talk to your principal about it," Akashi decided because he still didn't want to admit that his request might have been too much to do by lackeys like these guys.

"Oh, please don't! We will be in trouble if you do that!" Fukuda stood as well seeming to try to stop him.

"Hm?" Akashi narrowed his mismatched eyes at him and Fukuda shut his mouth up immediately, shaking his head and looking absolutely petrified.

Furihata threw a pleading look at Mibuchi, but Akashi also glared at the older boy so he could only look away despite his repentant look, unable to help Furihata at all. "Good. Now excuse me. I have a principal to meet." Satisfied that no one would oppose him anymore, Akashi turned around. "Let's go, Reo."

Mibuchi let out a resigned sigh before he rose from his seat as well, following Akashi's stride.

"Ah…w-wait! Please wait, Akashi-san!" Furihata, against his better judgment, apparently decided to fight his fear and run after Akashi. "Kuroko and Kagami… and everyone in that class have been working hard for the play! I-… I and the others also want to see their drama play, and… I absolutely can't let you ruin their hard wor—ah!"

Akashi turned around in time as Furihata launched himself (since his foot tripped on the edge of the low table) at him and out of reflex, he spread his arms to catch the boy before the brunet could fall and kiss the ground. And so, Furihata's face landed on Akashi's chest, while holding onto his back in attempt to restore his equilibrium.

"That was close. You almost hurt yourself. Be careful with your step," Akashi said coolly and was slightly amused as he saw the way Furihata widened his eyes, looking shocked as he slowly looked upward at him.

"Eh?" Furihata's cheek flushed pink instantly and Akashi couldn't believe that for a moment, he thought the view was kind of adorable and interesting.

 _Ah, but he does look like a small trembling bunny_ —Akashi's mind supplied the image of Furihata with brown furry rabbit's ears and tail, big teary chocolate eyes and looking at him with shaking body. Yes, definitely cute.

"F-Furiiiiii~!" Fukuda squeaked, absolutely scared while biting his nail, looking very worried for his friend's life.

Mibuchi seemed to notice Akashi's interest, so Akashi coughed slightly trying to conceal it. However, since he was still holding Furihata's surprisingly slender body (for a guy anyway, and a basketball player to boot), it was a lost cause. Akashi just shrugged then and curiously slid his hand slowly, mapping the quivering and whimpering boy's back up until his palm rested on the boy's neck and cheek.

"A-A-A-Akashi…san?" Furihata croaked, in the verge of crying now, his glassy eyes tearing up even more, seeming totally horrified.

"Uh, Sei-chan… please stop molesting that poor boy," Mibuchi said tentatively, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek, apparently worried that Akashi would do something inappropriate to his captive.

Huh. Since when had Akashi decided that Furihata was his captive anyway? Akashi didn't know why he thought like that. Something about the chocolate haired boy intrigued him, but he didn't know what it was. He hated it when people tried to oppose him, but somehow, this boy's attempt to stop him was… _endearing_. That was strange.

However, before Akashi could ponder further on that unexpected oddity he just discovered, someone else barged in the student council room. "Excuse me! Big Problem!"

The high desperate loud voice startled everyone as they jerked up to face the door. A girl with long wavy black hair wearing oval black-rimmed glasses was panting hard on the doorstep, her face pale and looking distressed.

"Eh… oh, w-what happened?" Furihata immediately responded worriedly despite still in Akashi's grasp.

The girl stared Furihata and Akashi's position for a few second absurdly while pacing her breath before she snapped. "Oh yes! I'm Chinatsu Sasaki, the president of Class 2B. We've got a very serious situation!" and she shouted dramatically afterwards.

Akashi might have been wrong (which was very rare), but he could almost see the imaginary crash of the ocean waves behind her.

"A… situation?" Fukuda looked alarmed.

"Yes," Sasaki nodded curtly. "Our class has been sabotaged!"

Akashi raised his eyebrows at that, while the others set a dumbfounded look. "Eh?"

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Class 3D at the same time as the student council…**

Hyuuga Junpei was twitching severely, "Kiyoshi~…!" and he hissed, in the verge of exploding like a volcano, all kinds of tics appearing on his head and face. Moreover, his body was shaking almost violently as he was trying to hold down his temper.

"Hmm…? What is it, Hyuuga?" Kiyoshi was smiling innocently, leaning closely against Hyuuga's back, holding him from behind as if he was a human sized plushie at their table, completely ignoring Hyuuga's vehemence that was about to burst out any moment now.

"Quit it, damn it! It's HOT!" Of course Hyuuga erupted now, while frantically trying to get away since he could never handle Kiyoshi well when he was like that. It was seriously annoying.

"Eeh? But it's still quite cold for me. Isn't it a host job to warm up this cold vampire?" Kiyoshi didn't seem about to loosen his hold on Hyuuga's waist at all despite his friendly looking face.

"Haa? What kind of logic is that?! Besides… you are NOT a guest, damn it! Let go! What about your own haunted hou—ouch!" Hyuuga was in the middle of his rant when a napkin smacked him right on his face. "Oww… W-what?" he looked around in confusion then.

"Shut it, Hyuuga-kun. Don't you want to win the popularity poll? Let Teppei play here," Riko's menacing glare and threatening tone made Hyuuga yelp in disbelief.

 _You'll do anything to keep him from bringing more customers in his own class?!_ —Hyuuga couldn't help thinking in horror because he had just realized that he was _the_ sacrificial lamb in this circumstance. Damn their coach and her tenacity to win a competition!

"Let it go, Hyuuga. Just think of it as a little price for a bigger catch," Izuki commented from the next table, irritating Hyuuga very much when he noticed that the Eagle Eye owner was snickering at his misfortune.

"Hyuuga, it's not a haunted house. It's a mystery house," Kiyoshi corrected sagely and Hyuuga was mighty pissed off now because Kiyoshi's hand was still on his waist.

"Who cares!?" Hyuuga roared, pinching Kiyoshi's hand mercilessly in retaliation that caused the bigger man to whine, but he didn't let go still, aggravating Hyuuga even more. "You—!" he was about to give the taller brunet a violent shove when he heard Riko's distressed voice.

"Eeeeh, how strange!"

"What is it, Coach?" Izuki asked and both Hyuuga and Kiyoshi turned to face Riko's direction near the prop table as well curiously.

"No, I'm sure I put my home-made onigiris here before… It's not here anymore. Who moved my lunch box?" Riko turned around and narrowed her eyes at the hosts in the class with a critical glare.

"Eh, Coach, you brought your home-made cooking here?" Hyuuga paled significantly. Kiyoshi and Izuki's faces were gradually losing color as well.

"I did! And now it's gone! Sheesh, someone stole my onigiri! And I brought five with me today too! Now I have to buy something to eat!" Riko pouted, looking disappointed and annoyed.

Hyuuga, Izuki and Kiyoshi silently looked at each other, guessing that the other two must have been thinking the same as him.

"W-well… someone must have taken it by mistake," Izuki offered, smiling apologetically.

"Too bad. We could have had one too, huh?" Kiyoshi smiled solemnly.

"No worries, coach. We will buy something for your share as well. Ah, why don't we take a break and go to Mitobe and Koganei's class to eat? It's Mitobe's, so the food will be delicious," Hyuuga offered, smiling ruefully even though he was just faking.

"Um, alright then," Riko sighed, seeming to let it go quite easily.

Hyuuga let out a long relieved sigh. Well, he would thank whoever stole the lunch away since he was so not eager to taste another hell from the coach's non-existent cooking skill. He just hoped that whoever it was didn't put those onigiris near their tongue…

**End of Chapter 8**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I know I said Akashi's plan would be revealed here, but there's a situation here! *parroting Sasaki*. Ahaha, unexpected development, indeed, but no worries, the real mess starts at the next chapter! XD And I'm happy that I got to show hints of AkaFuri again~ *love*, and AoKise… and KasaKise… and more KiyoHyuu and KagaKuro and MuraHimu! OMG! Have sooo much FUN writing this *kyaaaa*. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter as well! Feedback time, please~~~ *sings*


	9. The Grand Plan and the Play

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Akashi's bizarre plan is revealed and the chaotic play starts...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer and Warning: _See chapter 1!_**
> 
> Yah, everyone! We meet again in this update! I want to thank all of you readers for reading and giving kudos to this story, and extra hugs for the ones that took times to review! Special grateful thanks and cookies for [iin29otaku](http://www.fanfiction.net/u/4457799/iin29otaku) for her brilliant suggestion in the review! My dear, you INSPIRE me! XD (see, if you review there's a chance that your request will be granted *looool*) Now, please~ ENJOY this nuthouse! XDD
> 
> Oh, also... (almost forgot this), I know it's rather (really) late, but HAPPY VALENTINE!

  
**Chapter 9:** _**The Grand Plan and the Play** _   


* * *

"Our class has been sabotaged!"

Sasaki's loud dramatic exclaim caused the entire occupants in the room to fall into a stretched silence before- "Eh?" all of them (except Akashi who only raised both his eyebrows in wonder) set a dumbfounded look.

"Sa-sabotaged?" Furihata, still squirming in Akashi's embrace, was baffled.

"Yes," Sasaki nodded grimly. "Someone put poison in our food! Five important players in our class drama passed out because of this! They are in school infirmary now!"

"Poison?!" Fukuda looked aghast. "Who the hell would go that far for sabotaging a freaking class play?!"

An extremely terrifying realization suddenly dawned on Furihata's (and probably in Mibuchi and Fukuda's) mind as soon as the question left Fukuda's mouth. The three boys were slowly turning to look at Akashi, disbelief, accusation and suspicion written all over their face.

Akashi only looked back at Furihata, still with raised eyebrows. "It wasn't me. I'm here aren't I?" and of course the Emperor Eyes owner denied the silent allegation.

"B-but, just now… you wanted to stop them from performing at what all cost…!" Furihata frowned slightly at Akashi. "Did you—"

"I said it _wasn't_ me," Akashi's mismatched gaze turned icy and Furihata cringed at his chilly tone. "I might be something, but I don't lie," he slowly released Furihata's body and then turned to look at Reo. "I was with you the entire time, Reo. Did you see me talk to anybody else or do something suspicious?"

Mibuchi looked thoughtful for a moment before shaking his head. "Sei-chan is right. He hasn't made any contact with any food since we arrived, and he didn't touch his cell-phone or talk to anybody except me and you guys," he seemed sure of that, so Furihata believed him, oddly feeling relieved.

"Alright," Furihata nodded before he turned to look at Sasaki again. "Sasaki-san, are they all alright?"

"Of course NOT! They passed out!" Sasaki huffed, glaring outrageously at Furihata who stepped back slightly in reaction, afraid that he would upset the agitated girl further. "Anyway, that's not the important part!"

"It's not?" Fukuda threw her an anomalous stare, but Sasaki ignored him.

"I need student council's help! We're due to go on stage less than half an hour and we don't have enough players in our hand!" Sasaki raised her tone an octave higher this time, sounding completely in panic.

"C-calm down… you have a lot of students in your class, right? There's no way you don't have enough players," Furihata tried to futilely calm her down.

"No! No, you don't understand! We perform an all boy players for our play! There are only a few males in our class, you know! And we lost FIVE of them! All important roles! We need boys! Student council should lend us some!" Sasaki insisted, looking frustrated.

"That's impossible! Student council administrators are all busy managing the festival! Besides, a last minute stand in won't be able to memorize the dialogues in time! Why don't you make some of the girls that have been familiar with the lines and the play taking their place?" Fukuda's suggestion was very rational and Sasaki should really consider that, but…

"Then we'll lose our originality! There's no point in making it all boys play if there are girls playing it!" Yep, Sasaki was definitely a stubborn one. "I refuse to be defeated by situation and condition! We work hard for this play! As if we'd succumb to a stupid hindrance…!" she clenched her trembling fist and gritted her teeth.

"Alright," Akashi's cool voice earned him everyone else's mystified attention instantly. "It seems that someone else has beaten me into sabotaging your class play," the dichromatic eyes of golden and ruby glinted slightly when he smirked.

"Uh… Sei-chan?" Mibuchi seemed to feel the tell-tale of a very bad sign, which was promptly assaulting Furihata's mind as well at the 'plotting' flash in Akashi's deep beautiful orbs.

Still, Akashi overlooked Mibuchi's call and continued. "What a cheeky person, trying to take my place as a mastermind. Unforgiveable," now the smirk turned rather sinister, causing everyone to gulp in apprehension. "Fine then, I'll take that challenge."

Akashi turned to look at Sasaki who seemed to get caught immediately in his hypnotic eyes. "I'll lend you some boys to carry on with your class play. But, in one condition…."

"W-what?" Sasaki's voice quivered slightly as she responded to the very sweet offer.

"I get to control the plot of the play. How does that sound?" Akashi softened his expression as he smiled humanely at her and Sasaki only hesitated for a moment before she straightened her body, looking determined.

"Deal. It's a lot better than cancelling the play."

 _WHAAAAAAT?!_ —Furihata literally dropped his jaw in shock at the almost easy acceptance.

Oh, Sasaki just didn't know that she had sealed her class fate by making a pact with a devil and Akashi's mirthful expression could only bring a sense of foreboding on Furihata's (and obviously on Mibuchi and Fukuda's) mind.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"What happened… here?" Kagami actually gawked with bulging eyes as five people were littered out of the changing room of the great hall one by one by the students that had duty in the school clinic to help the school doctor during the festival.

"It seems that some of our classmates were… injured," Kuroko sounded doubtful and concerned for once as he also stared blankly at the disaster in front of them.

"I don't know what happened! They suddenly just collapsed without warning!"

"They were only in the middle of eating onigiri, right?!"

"Oh, right! Those five were the ones that took onigiri in the players' tray!"

"Some remnants of the onigiri are still on the floor!"

"Oh my GOD! What's that black smoke pouring out of the onigiri?!"

"Are those onigiri cursed or something?!"

"Hiiii! That's scary!"

The girls and some boys that were still inside the changing rooms were shouting and screaming and crying vociferously about some creepy onigiri that were scattered on the floor, suspiciously flaring dark aura that was believed to be toxic.

Kagami and Kuroko somehow got a strange sense of déjàvu as they stared at the (apparently) not so innocent pieces of accumulated rice on the floor.

"Kagami-kun… this is…" Kuroko squatted down near the onigiri while trying to carefully poke at it.

"It looks a lot like… Coach Aida's handmade…" Kagami paled slightly as he came closer as well. "How come coach's deadly cooking ended up in this changing room?"

"I smell something fishy," Kuroko said, looking somewhat somber.

"Yes, you smell _the onigiri_ , Kuroko! Who the heck puts raw squid inside onigiri?!" Kagami was officially affronted at that fact. It felt like a personal insult when there was a thing as hideous as onigiri which couldn't be eaten.

_It's onigiri for fuck's sake! Who can't make onigiri?!_

"But looking at the motive and opportunity, it is unlikely that our coach did this. Or else all the people that ate from the tray would have met the same ending as those five," Kuroko seemed thoughtful like a detective while pointedly ignoring Kagami's constant rant about how inhuman it was that someone could actually mess up making onigiri.

"Our class has been sabotaged."

From the door, Sasaki's voice replied Kuroko's declaration. Both Kagami and Kuroko turned to face the expected bespectacled girl, and yet nearly choked (Kagami) and gasped (Kuroko) when they were met by Akashi Seijuurou's face instead.

"A—Akashi?!" Kagami's strained his voice in alarm as he pointed at the smaller psychotic red head.

"What a coincidence, we met again, Kagami Taiga," Akashi greeted sardonically. "What a ridiculous costume you are wearing. Looks foolish," he added in a mocking tone.

"Sh-shut up! Why are you here?!" Kagami glared heatedly at Akashi while Akashi was looking down on him despite his shorter height.

"He's our savior, Bakagami-kun! Show some respect!" Sasaki emerged behind Akashi and aimed a derisive glare back at Kagami who flinched slightly at the hard tone she used. Then he growled as he saw the superior smirk adorning Akashi's face for that.

"Iinchou! Why are you with him?! He's a menace to society!" Kagami immediately complained at her for siding with the enemy.

"Quiet! We're in dire situation here! Just listen to our plan! Everyone, gather around!" then Sasaki clasped her palms noisily several times to attract the other students' attention as well.

Akashi didn't seem too interested in the assembling process as his dichromatic orbs were scanning the room and his Emperor Eyes immediately landed on Kuroko who visibly fiddled with the hem of his frilly long sleeves of the princess' dress.

"Tetsuya," Akashi called while smiling fondly at the bluenet.

"Akashi-kun," Kuroko nodded in recognition, still as expressionless as usual, but Kagami could see the weariness in his pale blue spheres. It seemed that he wasn't thrilled in the slightest seeing Akashi show up there.

"You look fantastic with that dress. Very amazing and beautiful," Akashi complimented and approached Kuroko to Kagami's total chagrin. He didn't know what Akashi was up to, but it couldn't be good.

"Thank you, but why are you here, Akashi-kun?" Kuroko asked composedly, unlike all the people around him which were tense and growing restless while Sasaki started to brief them with the new arrangement

"I came because someone is being very arrogant by trying to steal my _spot_ in creating mayhem to your class play. So to get back at whoever it is, I'll make sure that your drama will be valued no less than _number one_ in this festival," Akashi answered with a gentle smile.

 _What kind of bizarre reason is that?!_ —Kagami gaped at Akashi and scowled in indignation when Akashi made his move to take Kuroko's hand and kiss the back of his palm.

"So, you will become my princess in this play," Akashi said and Kuroko seemed to freeze on the spot at that assertion.

"Wait a damn second!" Kagami quickly interrupted the slightly (annoying) intimate moment by pulling Kuroko away from Akashi. "Kuroko is _my_ princess, you psychotic bastard!" and of course he glared at Akashi, completely on fire because he wouldn't lose to anyone being Kuroko's best partner.

"Hoo, it seems that I have to teach you another lesson so you will know your _damn_ place, huh, Kagami Taiga?" Akashi's mismatched eyes were also in ablaze, seemingly enraged since he actually cussed (and Kagami had never _ever_ heard Akashi cuss before) when the red head accepted Kagami's spontaneous challenge.

"This is getting interesting," Ayasaki whispered breathlessly in the background.

"True," Tamaki's eyes were sparkling and Sasaki nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright! Akashi-san will lend us some boys for us to continue with our original plan to go on show with our 'Doll Princess'. However, because of the last minute substitution, we will not play by the script! The general plot will be the same, but the players will have to improvise on stage! Now, costumes, makeup! Get ready to dress up our new boys! Background! Double check all the properties and lighting! Let's do this the best we can!" Sasaki was in high spirit as she directed everyone's movement and they obeyed her immediately because they had the same purpose, to be number one in this festival.

"See you on stage, Tetsuya," Akashi smiled again at Kuroko before he retreated to discuss something with Sasaki.

…

"Why… has our lives turned into this mess?" Kuroko was _actually_ lamenting (after being silent for awhile) over the chaos that would surely happen on stage later even though he was still in his trade-mark deadpanned expression.

"Tell me about it," Kagami completely agreed as he heaved a long suffering sigh. "But, what the hell is Akashi doing in our school festival? Can he actually crash our play just like that? He can't be planning something terrible, can he?" Well, he couldn't help feeling very worried about it.

An thus, the ominous premonition was proven very true when minutes later (after Akashi texted on his cell phone) the group of Miracle Rainbows showed up one by one at the changing room, claiming that they were summoned by the smirking ex-captain.

**#**

"Ryouta, you will become Prince Taiga's sister," Akashi commanded.

"EH?!" the blond looked shocked as he was caught by some _squealing_ girls as soon as he stepped inside the room, and was immediately dragged to the secluded area where they could freely and eagerly strip him off of his current clothes and put a yellow-golden-white colored long dress and long-blond wig on him efficiently despite his shrill cry of _'Nooooooo!'_.

"Aomine will be Prince Taiga's best friend," Akashi continued, giving a check mark on the paper nonchalantly.

"WHAT?!" Aomine squawked, but couldn't exactly protest since the girls that were in charge of his costume and makeup had big boobs. Though, he still had time to mutter about how impossible it was for him to become that Bakagami's best friend no matter in what circumstances they were, but that was beside the point.

"Shintarou will become the wizard," Akashi decided, to Midorima's offense.

"You've got to be kidding me," Midorima hissed, squeezing the straw doll on his hand while his other hand pushed up his glasses.

"No, I don't. Take him," Akashi didn't exactly laugh as Midorima was also caught before the green haired teen could run away, by another crowd of girls. He was actually squeaking as he was dragged away to Akashi's slight amusement.

"As for Atsushi… Prince Taiga's bodyguard," Akashi said, giving a look at Murasakibara who seemed rather bored and bothered.

"Aka-chin…"

As Akashi could detect the complaint at the tip of Murasakibara's tongue, he added, "The price of your cooperation will be 'all you can eat' coupon from class 3C cosplay café. I heard the sakura cake-rice there is to die for," because bribe could get him anywhere with Murasakibara, obviously.

"…Let's do this." Murasakibara complied immediately, looking rather zealous, even.

 _See?_ —Akashi smirked _again_.

"Huh? We are missing one person," Ayakashi quipped.

"Oh, really? Then, Reo…" Akashi looked around, but his senior wasn't there. "Where is he?" He pressed his lips into a thin line, getting annoyed because that older boy didn't follow his order to tag along him.

"Akashi-san, why don't you join up onstage as well?" Sasaki suggested.

"What?" Akashi frowned. He wanted to direct them, not playing incredulous roles with them.

"That's totally alright! I think this role will suit you perfectly!" Tamaki also spoke up to convince him.

"I don't particularly—" Akashi was still about to refuse, but he was interrupted again as Ayasaki squealed.

"That's it! Akashi-san is the KING!"

That actually made Akashi silent, totally considering. "The King…"

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Well, of course the other players that knew him (i.e. Kise, Aomine and Midorima who was still in the middle of changing) shouted in total horror and incredulity, while Kagami dropped his jaw, Murasakibara widened his eyes and Kuroko looked stunned.

"That seems interesting," Akashi smiled seeing their interesting colorful reaction. Moreover, thinking that he could actually control the play as the King in it… what a fitting _fate_ , "Very well. Dress me up," he resolutely agreed.

_Yes. This is bound to get explosive._

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Haah… what should we do? We couldn't stop Akashi Seijuurou from meddling with Kuroko and Kagami's class play…! What will happen to this drama?" Furihata was worried sick as he sat on one of the seats that he and Fukuda had reserved for them and their basketball club, in the great hall. The seats were nicely situated three rows in front of the stage where they could see every nook and crook on the stage from the seats angle.

However, good seats didn't make Furihata feel better in the slightest about this uncanny state of affairs. He was pale and his hands were cold and clammy because of his nervousness.

"Coach Aida will kill us for sure… and the student council president as well… and the principal," Fukuda's face turned rather green at this point. He looked close to puking.

"Ugh…! Let's just hope that he won't mess the play too much…" despite his hopeful words, Furihata knew it was like… an unattained dream, just like his _crush_ who still didn't look at him as a potential lover even though Seirin basketball team went into final in Winter Cup last time.

"Furihata-kun! Fukuda-kun!"

Riko's voice startled them as they turned around edgily to face the horde of their senpai and kouhai who were obviously keyed up to see this drama as well.

"C-coach! Senpai and… everyone!" Furihata immediately waved at them, his heartbeat going crazy, very anxious if they could catch on his and Fukuda's mess.

"T-the seats are ready! H-here!" Fukuda pointed at the seats for them.

"Wow, these are nice seats!" Izuki exclaimed as he hurriedly sat on the seat at the middle.

"Ah, Izuki! I want to sit there!" Koganei, no longer in a cat-maid costume –to everyone's utter disappointment–, protested exuberantly.

"So noisy! There are a lot of good seats, Koga. Just sit there beside him already!" Hyuuga pushed the shorter boy who pouted at him in return.

"Huh, Kiyoshi, you're still wearing your Dracula costume?" Tsuchida asked as Kiyoshi sat beside Hyuuga who made a disgruntled noise about the brunet being too close and ' _move further away, damn it!'_

"Don't have time to change. Besides, Host Hyuuga seems to love this costume," Kiyoshi grinned, his hand sneaking to Hyuuga's waist _again_ which caused Hyuuga to slap it hard.

"I absolutely HATE Dracula!" Hyuuga yelled, denying that vehemently.

"Come on guys! Hurry and sit already! First years can sit behind us," Riko exasperatedly organized the pack of boys who apparently were noisier than some group of girls that were already seated some rows behind them.

"Coach, why are you dressed like a boy?" one of the first years asked curiously.

"That's because my class is a host club right now. I can't dress like a girl if I want to attract the girls, can't I?" Riko huffed at him. "Alright! Enough chattering! Behave!" and she barked an order that was immediately answered with _'yes mam!'_ by the younger boys.

"Mitobe, is it alright to leave your post? What about the café?" Izuki then asked as Mitobe sank at the seat beside Koganei.

Mitobe nodded at Izuki with a small reassuring smile as Koganei chirped, "He already prepared plenty of foods to feed an army of five hundred people. No worries!"

"But our estimation for the visitors is close to a thousand, right?" Hyuuga sweated slightly as he seemed to remember that, while still trying to shove Kiyoshi's adventurous hand away from him.

"And we will get more than 50% votes for our popularity poll," Riko grinned gleefully as she was about to sit down on the seat at the end of the row.

"Ara? Isn't it Seirin's team?"

Looking upward and slightly turning around, everyone was met with a cute girl with beautiful long pink hair and a sexy body. The boys (especially the first years) drooled slightly seeing her. Riko glared at all of them and they immediately looked away, sweating fearfully.

"Momoi-chan, you came, huh?" Despite her slight infuriation, Riko still smiled as she was greeting Momoi. Then she seemed to notice another person behind her, the timid boy from Touou. Riko raised her eyebrows at that. "With Sakurai-kun?"

"Of course! I won't miss the glory of _my_ Tetsu-kun as a princess onstage!" Momoi squealed excitedly. "Oh, and Sakurai-kun is here because Dai-chan forced him to come," she continued as an afterthought.

"G-good afternoon," Sakurai bowed deeply. "Sorry for intruding," he said, smiling nervously.

"Why are you apologizing…?" Riko's sweat dropped at that.

"Indeed. Sakurai-kun should be more confident!" Momoi slapped Sakurai's back as the boy winced and squeaked. Momoi giggled as she moved forward and didn't seem to see that there was a small stair on her path that she slipped her foot. "Ah!"

"Momoi-chan!" Riko, being the closest and the fastest to react, immediately stood and caught the pink haired girl before she could fall while Sakurai was panicking at the background, frantically apologizing for not reacting quick enough, but he was thoroughly ignored by the two girls.

"That's dangerous. Be careful with your step. There are stairs here," Riko said, holding Momoi's slightly taller body closely while helping her to regain her balance.

"T-thank you, senpai…" Momoi looked at Riko and her current masculine appearance, rather astonished for awhile after Riko let go of her before Momoi's cheeks turned rather rosy. "Senpai looks very cool," she said coyly afterwards.

"Really?" Riko chuckled, looking rather bashful suddenly. "Come on, sit here. The show is about to begin!"

"Okay!" Momoi grinned cheerily as she followed Riko and sat on the seat behind her.

"Um… I-I'm sorry for… huh? W-what about me?" Sakurai looked lost as he looked around to find himself a seat. Apparently, he decided to settle down at the back row afterwards, undoubtedly not wanting to cause a further inconvenience to everyone around him.

"Are there still vacant seats here?" Takao's face showed up in the great hall a minute later, along with Kasamatsu.

"Sheesh, those selfish Miracle bastards! How come they always ditch us for their ex-captain?" Kasamatsu clearly grumbled angrily as he took a seat behind Momoi while Takao asked another girl if the seat beside her was taken. She blushed and shook her head shyly and then squealed at the girl beside her when Takao took the seat there between her and Kasamatsu.

"Couldn't be helped. They have such a strong bond until now after all," Himuro's voice answered Kasamatsu's nitpick and both he and Takao turned to Himuro's direction at the seat across their row.

"Wow… you're Himuro from Yousen. Geh! You came from Akita for this festival?!" Takao looked very surprised, and amazed apparently.

"Atsushi really wanted to come, so…" Himuro gave Takao a rueful smile.

"Sometimes I feel very sorry for us for having ever been one of those Miracle idiots' partners…" Kasamatsu sighed deeply.

"Agreed," Takao mourned openly.

"That means all the GoM are here, huh…?" Furihata's sweat dropped as he saw all the Miracle sidekicks sitting just behind his senpai and beside his kouhai.

"But, where are they, the GoM…?" Fukuda seemed to wonder because all the GoM weren't exactly there in the great hall as the spectators.

Furihata and Fukuda looked at each other before they caught a sight of Mibuchi Reo entering the great hall from the _backstage_ direction. The raven saw them and gave them a rather uneasy smile and it immediately clicked on Furihata's mind as he turned white.

"No way…!"

Oh yes, Furihata felt like fainting for real right about now.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen! Now after 30 minutes of break, we will present you another drama play! From the creator of original drama script that won a national competition last year, brought and presented by Class 2B, _Doll Princess_!"

The presenter shouted enthusiastically into the microphone and his voice echoed throughout the great hall. The audiences clapped their hands in happy cheer for awhile before the sound started to die down and the light in the room dimmed to accommodate the light on the stage.

There was a bell sound and then slow tuned music began to play. The curtain on the stage was opening slowly until a big palace background made appearance there. Then the dry ices took their role in filling the stage floor with supposedly frosty mist.

" _Long-long ago,"_ the narrator's voice was heard a minute later, _"There was a kingdom in a prosper land. The kingdom was ruled by an amazing king, strong in combat, brilliant in politics. The king was thoughtful of his people and his people loved him dearly in return. He had beautiful elegant caring wife that was pretty much in love with him and an adorable crown prince that looked up to him very much. He was very happy as a husband, as a father and as a ruler._

" _However, like in every fairy tale that had ever existed, the King's happiness didn't last very long. As the queen was pregnant with another child, she grew weaker day by day and by the time she gave birth to a princess for the kingdom to love, the queen passed away."_

The narrator stopped speaking and a light swept the ground on the stage where there was a little boy, probably 6 year old, with spiky double colored red-brown hair and split eyebrows, that started to cry rather miserably, showing his big watery crimson orbs with such miraculously adorable expression on his face.

The female audiences immediately swooned at the cuteness while the Seirin basketball club widened their eyes in shock.

"Who the heck is that kid?" Hyuuga gaped.

"He's a splitting image of Kagami!" Koganei dropped his jaw.

"Only in a kid version?" Kiyoshi tilted his head aside, looking confused.

"So cuuuute!" Riko and Momoi squealed in delight.

On the stage, a second light came up illuminating another spot where a red haired king with mismatched eyes looking down at the boy from his throne.

"Eh…? That's…!" Izuki trembled, paling.

"AKASHI SEIJUUROU?!" everyone (including Takao, Kasamatsu and Himuro) shouted in horror.

"SSSSSH!" the other students shushed them scornfully.

Back on stage, king Akashi was still staring unblinkingly at the crying little boy for a good full minute before he opened his mouth and- _"Who is this?"_

Every audience and the king's advisor was floored instantly, while little prince Kagami made a choked sound (probably withholding a surprised laughter).

" _Your Majesty! It's Prince Kagami! Your crown prince!"_ the advisor half shouted ridiculously and Akashi coughed once, apparently trying to conceal his mistake.

" _I know that."_ Akashi said.

 _LIAR!—_ and everyone thought of that in retort, judging by their incongruous stare.

"Why is Akashi Seijuurou here, _ONSTAGE?!_ " Riko screamed in undertone, not wanting to get kicked out of the great hall. She didn't ask anyone in particular, but she wished someone would answer that.

"Aaaa! This is disaster!" Furihata covered his face, not ready to face the chaos that would surely ensue there.

" _It's just… I don't remember raising a crybaby as my crown prince,"_ king Akashi continued, looking pointedly at the boy who froze at his rather eerie stare. _"I already taught you that crying wouldn't solve problems, right… Kagami?"_

Instead of stopping his cry, little prince Kagami cried harder, looking very much terrorized by Akashi's frightening smile.

" _Your Majesty! What's the good in scaring prince Kagami like that?!"_ the advisor looked exasperated as he squatted down to lift the small prince, trying to comfort the still sobbing boy.

 _What the hell is this play?—_ Big beads of sweats rolled down on the audiences' cheeks on their seats, looking at the scene ludicrously.

" _Ck. It's too troublesome."_ King Akashi clicked his tongue, looking bothered. _"Give him to me,"_ then he commanded his advisor while spreading his arms.

" _Eh?"_ the advisor looked hesitant and the little prince was obviously struggling because he didn't want to, but Akashi's firm glare made the advisor cringe as he didn't have a choice but to offer the crying sacrificial lamb to the devil.

"Aaaah! The little kid will be eaten!" one of the audiences shouted in panic.

Well, look at that. Things started to heat up as the audiences were beginning to immerse themselves in the play, and the first scene even hadn't finished yet.

" _Listen to me, little one,"_ king Akashi seemed to try to be patient as he spoke, even though the squirming boy in his arms were still sniffing restlessly, looking mighty scared. _"Crying only makes you tired. When you cry, all the frustration, anger and sadness melt away with those tears that you shed, leaving behind only fatigue. If you hold them down, you can turn them into a source of energy, a power to make you stronger."_

"Huh? Where have I ever heard those lines before…?" Furihata scrunched up his face.

" _That's why. Stop crying," king_ Akashi commanded once again to the child, putting his forehead on the little prince's. _"You are a man, aren't you?"_ then king Akashi showed the little boy a gentle, fatherly smile that caused everyone to gasp as if their hearts were pierced by the 'love' in those words.

 _Papa Akashiiiiii!_ —the audiences were completely teary eyed as they saw the sweet moment.

"That… isn't that…?" Fukuda was apparently recognizing the lines as well.

"The dialog that was spoken by Oga Tats*** in Beelze*** episode ***," Furihata remembered, his expression falling.

 _Is that okay, such plagiarism?! Where's the originality again?!_ —and their feelings were pretty much conflicted at this point.

However, despite the cool lines from his supposedly father, the little prince Taiga didn't seem to be moved as he continued with his sniffling and sobbing (probably still feeling terrified of Akashi's creepy smile earlier), obviously annoying king Akashi as he sighed.

There was a suspicious snorting sound from the speaker as the narrator continued. _"Drown with his deep grief, little Prince Kagami continuously cried until the King ordered the most prominent wizard in the kingdom to make a human sized doll with the appearance of his late wife."_

Change of scene, the curtain was closed for a minute before it was opened again for the second scene where Akashi was still sitting leisurely on his throne as he commanded. _"Summon my kingdom wizard here."_

" _At once, Your Majesty!"_ the guards scurried hurriedly to the back stage before he emerged again from behind the curtain while announcing. _"His Excellency has arrived!"_

Then the great wizard, Master Midorima with all his sophisticated layers of robe and old looking golden staff, came onstage, walking briskly until he stopped in front of Akashi. _"What do you want?"_ and he spoke crudely at the king, surprising everyone on and off stage because-

 _Is that how you're supposed to speak with a king?!_ —they thought incredulously _again_.

"Oh my GOD! That's Shin-chan!" Takao almost doubled over in hilarity as he pointed at the green haired boy while all the Seirin members widened their eyes again, almost popping them out of their sockets as they yelped.

"Why is Midorima ONSTAGE as well?!"

"SSSSSH!" and again, the other students shushed them, glaring at them to shut up.

" _Always full of scowl… Shintarou. Keep it and you surely will get wrinkles on your brows in no time,"_ king Akashi chuckled in humor, seeming to have fun mocking his wizard.

Apparently the wizard and the king didn't get along here.

" _Firstly, my name is Midorima, not this 'Shintarou' you keep spouting out. And two, I've lived a thousand years, Your Majesty, it's completely NORMAL to have wrinkles on my brows,"_ the wizard responded almost imperturbably, but he pushed up his glasses and showed Akashi how irritated he was for this idiotic charade.

" _Is that so? You strike me as a 'Shintarou' kind of guy, though,"_ king Akashi smirked, still intending to prolong his fun.

The wizard took a deep breath and counted to ten before he spoke again. _"What task do you want to give me, Your Majesty? I'd prefer if you hurry because I still have a lot of things to do after this,"_ he said, offering his service despite the obvious reluctant.

" _How thoughtful, my dear,"_ king Akashi smirked as wizard Midorima winced at the 'dear' word. _"Alright, I'll cut to the case. Make me a doll, will you?"_

There was a pregnant silence befalling onstage before the wizard asked, _"For your new hobby?"_

The audiences erupted in uproarious laughter at that response as king Akashi set a scary sinister smirk that caused even wizard Midorima to show an _'eep—!'_ expression.

" _I believe if your eyes aren't just hollow holes, unless you wanted them that way, I'd be happy to assist, my dear. You see, my little crown prince is very sad that he lost his mother in such young age. No matter what I do, he won't stop crying. That's why… I want you to make a doll that looks like his mother, so he won't be too lonely and every time he misses her, he can always see that her mother is still with him through that doll,"_ king Akashi explained.

 _There are so many unnecessary threats in there!_ —the audience felt pity towards the green haired wizard who looked troubled at the request.

" _I understand, but you must take a note that something that's created from my hands is bound to possess a soul. You must treat that soul kindly as you treat human being, my King. Is that acceptable condition?"_ the wizard warned haughtily.

" _Whatever you say, but seriously, are you a retard? Doll can't have a soul. Don't say such silly thing."_ Though, king Akashi dismissed the warning and still wanted that doll made for his little crown prince.

" _I'm not responsible if you get cursed,"_ the wizard shrugged and muttered indifferently as he efficiently left the stage.

 _W-what on earth kind of play is this? Shouldn't this be a romantic comedy? It doesn't look like romantic comedy, but more like an ABSURD comedy!_ —all the Seirin thought inwardly while sweating bullets as Kasamatsu was dumbfounded, while Himuro was blinking confusedly and Takao was still laughing his ass off choking out words like ' _Shin-chan… a wizard… OMG! Ahahahaha!_ ' yep, and wheezing as well for a good measure.

_What in the world will happen to this drama play?!_

**End of Chapter 9**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update. I actually wanted to post this yesterday, but I got held up at the how to tell the drama play scene since I hadn't decided how it would have been before (which would be told in the audiences POV, since it's funnier that way *lol*) and yes! Akashi's plan is this *giggles* even though his reason is a bit off *mad laughs*. I hope this is funny for you. It will get even more hilarious in the next chapter! Saa, let me hear what you think! XD


	10. The Doll Princess Kuroko!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Doll Princess Kuroko shows up! All hell break loose...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am very sorry for the wait. Life gets busy as always. Anyway, I'm really happy that the previous chapter is funny (I couldn't stop laughing either as I made it *lol*). And thanks for all the supportive comments, some new kudos! Saa, now please ENJOY this chapter! **Disclaimer: Kurobasu is NOT MINE, except for this fic plot *grins* and the drama play XD.**  
>  **Warning:** Major craziness and insanity *lol*, crack-ish dialogues, some horror (you'll know when you read), shounen ai, foul language, possible spelling mistakes and grammar errors.

  
**Chapter 10:** _**The Doll Princess, Kuroko!** _   


* * *

"So… who are _those brats_ , again?"

Kagami's eyes and eyebrow twitched as he incredulously eyed the six year old that looked exactly like him, only smaller, younger and a _LOT_ cuter. There was also a bigger and older kid with red and brown hair and _split eyebrows_ just like Kagami. _What the hell?!_ But, the brat still looked like a middle schooler to say the least, a little bit lanky too in muscles department, and shorter in height.

"They are my brothers. Don't mind them. They only appear at the first several acts anyway," Sasaki answered distractedly, since she was trying to negotiate with Akashi about something.

"Liar! There's no way! They don't look like _Iinchou_ at all! And what's with those eyes and hair color?! And those eyebrows—"

"Oh, SHUT UP! Can't you see we're busy here?!" Sasaki cut Kagami's frantic ramble with a high pitched shout and a murderous glare, successfully making Kagami cringe. "I told you to not mind them already!"

_Well, isn't she on edge...?_

Kagami inched further away from the agitated dark haired girl, and also was aware of the way Akashi smirked at his dismay, being scolded by Sasaki like that, from his peripheral vision.

_Damn that shorty and his superiority complex!_

"But… it's kind of freaky! It's like I'm staring at myself in my kid's version!" Kagami paled as he was still eyeballing those children warily. This must have been some kind of trick. There was just no way had such coincidence existed in this world. They couldn't be some kind of the alternate universe version of Kagami, right?

Kuroko though, looked absolutely transfixed with wonder as he stared at the six year old Kagami lookalike. His clear sky-blue eyes almost sparkled even though his face was passive. Somehow, Kuroko moved closer to the little kid that spoke shyly to one of the female students that cooed at him while squealing at how cute he was.

"Kuroko?" Kagami of course noticed his partner's peculiar behavior.

Kuroko didn't seem to hear him as he squatted down carefully, minding his dress, while his eyes never straying from the kid as he smiled. "He is so adorable," he complimented fondly, surprising the little boy and the girls immediately with his sudden appearance near them very much such that they yelped.

"Eh?" Kagami was the one that blushed seeing such sweet expression in Kuroko's face. Because… damn it! It was the -usually deadpanned- Kuroko! And he was telling Kagami's kid version that he was _adorable_!

 _What kind of expression is that?!_ —Kagami screeched inwardly, almost exploding in embarrassment.

Kuroko ruffled the little boy's hair, causing him to smile cheerily at the bluenet immediately. In addition, Kuroko glanced at Kagami's direction, seeming to perceive Kagami's discomfiture as he smiled at him as well, causing Kagami's face to heat more prominently.

 _Daaaamn! He can't be doing that on purpose, can he?!_ —Kagami was in the verge of yelling at Kuroko to cut that out, but someone else beat him to it.

"Tetsuya, come here for a second."

Kagami turned to face the owner of that authoritative voice and scowled at Akashi who always called Kuroko's given name too casually. How irritating.

"Yes," Kuroko stood as the little boy jerked slightly in alarm at the call from the scary king. He immediately hid behind Kuroko for safety. Kuroko chuckled slightly as he said "Later." Then he petted the boy's head gently before he left to approach Akashi.

"What are they discussing?" Kagami narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Akashi and Kuroko as they spoke.

"Apparently, Tetsu will come out at the next act."

A familiar deep _almost_ sexy voice from his behind jolted Kagami in surprise. He immediately turned around only to find Aomine with a _Prince's_ outfit. Though, it was colored black instead of white like Kagami's, and it fit perfectly on Aomine's body, outlining his toned built very nicely.

Kagami almost hated how good-looking the dark-blue haired teen was in the costume, and definitely shocked that he actually considered Aomine to be so damn attractive such that he was flabbergasted.

"What?" Aomine glared, looking annoyed.

"Y-you… look absolutely ridiculous!" Kagami lied and faked a bark of laugh just to irritate the Touou's ace and because he didn't want to admit that Aomine looked so much sexier than his usual self with that Prince's costume.

"Shut the fuck up!" Aomine made an attempt to punch Kagami's gut, his face turning rosy even if it didn't show much because of his caramel colored complexion. Kagami just dodged as he continued laughing, fruitfully embarrassing Aomine.

Midorima dissected the two bickering boys with contempt in his emerald eyes behind his glasses, huffing while commenting "Can anyone please shut them up…!"

"Mido-chin, the wrinkles in your brows just increased five," Murasakibara, already dressed as the royal guard, didn't stop munching his chips as he poked Midorima's wrinkle-makeup with his salty, spice-covered index finger.

Midorima instantly snapped. "And you! Stop eating right NOW! And get that dirty finger away from my face!" Yes, he was at his worst temper, obviously, probably because he was forced to play in the drama that _even_ wasn't in his own school event, and he couldn't bring his lucky item with him to the stage because the straw doll was _ugly_ , according to the Class 2B girls.

"Huh, I haven't seen Kise, yet. What's he playing again?" Aomine was still trying to mess Kagami's crowned hair while the red head struggled by pushing Aomine's hand and chest, successfully creasing some parts of Aomine's costume.

"As if I'd know! Let go, asshole!"

"You two! Stop ruining your makeup and clothes!" Ayasaki shrieked in horror because Aomine and Kagami were wrestling childishly on the floor, effectively crumpling their clothes. "And Kagami! Watch your damn language! There are kids here!"

 _Are you really one to reproach me with your own screwed up language?!_ —Kagami thought incredulously.

" _Nooooo! Please don't pull me ouuuuut!"_

"Ah."

A shrill voice from one of the changing booth a few feet from their spot informed both Kagami and Aomine about Kise's whereabouts. Apparently, he was still struggling with his own costume.

" _It's alright, Kise-kun! You look absolutely gorgeous!"_ some girls coaxed him with dreamy voice.

" _You're lyiiiiing! There's just no way a guy as tall and athletic as me can look good in a dress! I must look hideous!"_ Kise totally whined, sounding absolutely distressed.

Aomine showed a feral grin. "He must really look hilarious in Princess's outfit."

"I don't want to see…" Kagami felt rather nauseous at the thought before he sighed deeply in resignation. The craziness had apparently just begun, and it would definitely get nuttier… starting from now.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"So, who do you think will come out next?" Takao was restless on his seat, definitely excited as he ogled the stage like a hawk. No pun intended.

"Hell if I know…" Kasamatsu muttered, worried that Kise would show up onstage as well. He hoped not, because those crazy rainbows would surely wreck the drama if it continued like what Akashi and Midorima did earlier.

The sound of the narrator brought all the audiences' eyes back onstage while the curtain was slowly open to reveal the next act.

" _And so, the Great Wizard Midorima worked hard days and nights, pouring his soul into making this special doll that the king had ordered him to make."_ The light onstage changed from bright to dim repeatedly and gradually to show the pass of time. _"It took him three months to complete the task splendidly, and at least… a Doll Princess was born."_

Something was lowered from the ceiling. It was a white board decorated with white satin cloth and furs and water lilies, strapped with thin but strong piano wires on the four corners to hold the weight of the person that sat there, giving an impression of a floating chair.

"Whoa! Is our school really that loaded that they can provide a drama club with such expensive and extravagant looking property?" Hyuuga couldn't help gawking.

"Sssssh!" the others shushed him in warning for being too loud. Hyuuga immediately slapped his mouth shut sheepishly as they focused once more on the play.

On top of the board was a very realistic beautiful doll with long white-blue dress and waist-length straight teal colored hair framing a relatively feminine face that hosted a pair of dull but equally beautiful aquamarine colored eyes. A tiara crown was perched on top of _her_ head brilliantly. The audiences gasped in awe as they saw the stunning doll for the first time.

"It's… not actually a doll, right?" a girl whispered from the front seat.

"Holy crap…! I heard it's all boys play. So… is that a boy? _Really?_ " an older guy choked in disbelief from the back seat.

"E-eeh…?! Really? But, it really does look like a doll…!" some younger teens on the middle seats spoke as well in fascination.

"Who plays the doll again?" Some girls asked in bafflement.

"It's here in the flyer… Kuroko Tetsuya! As I thought, it's a guy!"

"Whoa~ so cute!"

"I can't believe it's a guy!"

"Kyaaaah! It's Tetsu-kuuuuun! So cuuuute!" Momoi almost passed out in hysteria seeing how wonderful Kuroko was onstage even though said cross-dressing boy practically didn't do anything except looking pretty.

 _An instant fan-girl?!_ —the others stared at Momoi dumbly.

When the board landed in the middle of the stage, the audiences was absolutely thunderstruck, some even murmured in total astonishment at the pretty doll for awhile until the narrator (who was silent the entire time) coughed slightly, apparently also stunned, before continuing.

" _T-the Doll Princess looked exactly like the queen, and she almost seemed alive, so when King Akashi brought his little Crown Prince Kagami to see her…"_

" _Mother!"_

A cry of triumph and happiness of the little Prince Kagami from the side stage stole the audiences' attention away from the Doll princess for a moment. King Akashi stood there as well when the little prince ran towards the doll and threw himself at the seated Doll Princess to hug _her_ on the neck.

Doll Princess didn't even flinch at the enthusiastic child, fawning over her cheerily and happily as King Akashi approached them slowly before he sat beside her. His fingers brushed at the doll's hair and brought some strands to his mouth before kissing them gently.

The female audiences swooned at the intimate and sweet atmosphere while the guys squeaked in surprise at the daring gesture. The Seirin basketball team was horrified as Momoi squealed about Akashi being so charming.

 _Poor Kuroko-kun!_ —Riko and the other seniors couldn't help thinking in mortification.

Though, the sound of struggle and enraged voices from the backstage seemed to inform the audiences that this scene wasn't supposed to happen at all. Some first years from basketball club snickered at Kagami's undertone yell (which was thoroughly overheard, by the way) about the king being a perverted bastard and _'get your hands off of my princess!'_ while the second and third years' face faulted.

"Doll Princess Kuroko showed up and all hell break loose, huh?" Izuki couldn't help remarking ruefully.

" _I knew it. It's for your new hobby."_ Wizard Midorima came out from the stage side, scowling disapprovingly at the king who only clicked his tongue at his, _apparently_ , unexpected appearance, and heading to him just to grab and pull King Akashi back to where he belonged: the backstage, while fuming. _"It's not your time to come out here, Your Majesty. Let's go back to finish some kingdom matters and please stop ruining the plot."_ He stressed at the last line while King Akashi only glared at him in enmity.

The audiences immediately guffawed at that scene while the little prince Kagami's sweat dropped, obviously pretending not to notice the instant commotion on the audiences' seat.

" _Ahem."_ The narrator interrupted the fuss before resuming the narration. _"The crown prince was very fond of the doll and kept calling Doll Princess 'mother'. He decanted his love for her like his love for his birth mother. He would converse with her like he would with the queen. He never missed a day to see her and tell her stories about the kingdom, about what he experienced outside the castle, and he even spent most nights with her every single day."_

The curtain was closed and there was some busy sound of changing the background before the stage was open once again, revealing a room look-alike as Doll Princess was seated at a comfy looking nest made of pillows and mattresses. Beside her was a boy, the Crown Prince Kagami, but he looked significantly older, about 12 or 13 year old, and he smiled at the doll gently.

"Geh! Another Kagami look-alike?!" Koganei dropped his jaw.

"Seriously! How many young endearing Kagami-kun are there?!" Riko couldn't help fawning at the still innocent looking red head. They were so damn cute after all. Though, the others could only stare in shock at this.

" _Years slowly passed, and the crown prince was growing up."_ The Narrator spoke like a cue for the player to start with their lines.

" _I'm old enough to know that you aren't my mother now, but I do still love you like my own."_ The young Prince Kagami said, gazing at the expressionless doll affectionately. _"I'll stop calling you mother from now on. Right, I know I should have done it a long time ago. But you are just so dear to me that I want to call you 'mother' all the time. Though, you do deserve a beautiful name. How about… Kuroko?"_

The doll's aquamarines orbs glinted slightly right after the name was spoken. The audiences didn't miss that change.

"Just now… did you see…?"

"W-well…"

"For a moment… I saw the flicker in the doll's eyes."

"Wait, the doll is an actual guy, right? Isn't that supposed to be normal?"

"B-but, until a second ago… I honestly thought that it was just a doll…"

"Y-yeah, I did too. I meant… he's so expressionless and so… _dead_ before?"

"It's so strange. How come… did I really imagine the doll coming into life?"

…

…

 _W-what a scary kid!_ —the Audiences gaped at Kuroko like Mayuko Shijo in ' _Glass no Kamen_ ', admiring (and totally afraid of) the _Doll Princess_ (Kuroko)'s talent in his acting.

" _You know, Kuroko. I made a new friend today."_ Young Prince Kagami continued his dialogue, momentarily pinching the audiences' interest again towards him. _"He's from the neighbor kingdom. He's wild and rather conceited, but essentially… he's a great guy. One day I'll bring him to see you."_

Young Prince Kagami tilted his face aside, facing the window that the Doll Princess faced. _"Look at that. It's the sunset,"_ he pointed at the window as orange light streamed inside, illuminating the stage beautifully as the young prince smiled warmly at the doll again. _"I'm glad you can always see the beautiful view from here, Kuroko."_ Young Prince Kagami took the doll's stiff hand before he bent down and kissed the back of her palm. _"See you again tomorrow."_

Then the prince stood before leaving the room (stage). It was quiet for a moment before- _"See you, My prince,"_ a dry whisper suddenly filled the entire great hall, making the audiences jump from their seats in total surprise.

"W-what was that… just now?!" Furihata almost panicked.

"Ssssh!" the audiences who were very into the play now, got annoyed for every interruption and glared daggers at the brunet, causing him to squeak slightly before clamping down his mouth.

" _Then…"_ the narrators tone turned lower, bringing the air in the great hall down with her voice. _"That night of a full moon… a miracle happened."_

The stage was dim lit, soft fake moonlight sweeping the room where the Doll Princess was seated. Her aquamarine eyes shone slightly reflecting the light. The audiences audibly gulped with their hearts pounding from the sudden suspense.

For a fragment of second, the Doll Princess twitched, starting from her fingers, causing the audiences to hold their breath. The twitch moved upward to her wrists and then elbows, shoulders, neck until it reached her head. The clacking sounds were in sync with every jolt and pop that happened to the doll joints.

The doll slowly moved her head stiffly, making the audiences gasp as her body jerked forward and fell on the ground, the supposedly wooden hand crackling as it reached out to the audiences, almost like crawling onstage. Part of her hair was strewn across her expressionless face, her eyes glinting mysteriously, and she barely opened her mouth as a hiss of intangible murmur filled the room, _once again_ , that was suddenly freezing with so many dry ices around.

The audiences shivered as the chill seeped down their body, their spine tingling, their face slowly paling at the magnificent and yet terrifying sight of the doll moving on the ground, dragging her deadweight with much difficulty while reaching out to them.

_What the—! A horror scene!?_

The audiences screamed inwardly, terrified out of their mind as the Doll Princess onstage whispered- _"My prince…"_ with such arid and croaky voice, causing the hair on the back of their neck stand, before the curtain suddenly fell down, covering the stage and closing the scene.

… Silence befell upon the great hall for a few seconds before-

"W-what the heck is that?!"

"Isn't this supposed to be a romantic comedy play?!"

"Mommy! I'm scaaaaared!"

"Hiiiiiiy!"

"T-that's very scary…!"

The uproar was unleashed and Seirin basketball team almost passed out with foam on their mouth while the Kiseki sidekicks were utterly dumbfounded.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Kuroko-kun! What are you doing?! It's not a horror play, you know!" Sasaki scolded him in panic the moment he went backstage as the background was being changed once again.

"I apologize. I did not mean it to look that way," Kuroko monotonously replied before his eyes caught sight of Kagami and Aomine at the corner, squatting down while holding their head, their whole body trembling violently. "What happened?" he couldn't help asking Sasaki who immediately snorted as she also saw what he saw.

"They screamed like damsel in distress when they saw your horror act," Ayasaki replied for her while rolling her eyes.

"We did NOT!" Kagami and Aomine apparently heard the mocking remark and immediately hollered in retaliation at the same time, looking completely indignant. Though, their pale frightened faces were kind of a dead giveaway of how petrified they were before.

"I see. Both Kagami-kun and Aomine-kun are bonding since they found their similar trait," Kuroko didn't _actually_ mean to tease them, but it was just a waste not to. They were both very interesting when they sputtered and blushed furiously before going back to insulting each other.

"Come on! Time for the next act! Prince Kagami and Prince Aomine will come out!" Tamaki informed from near the stage.

"It's the time already?" Kagami's voice cracked slightly. He sounded nervous.

"What, not confident enough to say your lines?" Aomine taunted, smirking sardonically at Kagami.

"Oh, shut up! You don't even have any fixed dialogue, Ahomine!" Kagami delivered a light punch on his arm irritably. Aomine snickered at him for being so jittery in reaction. "Just… don't say anything stupid, okay? We will be there together after all."

Aomine only grinned wickedly and Kagami seemed to have a bad feeling about it. Kuroko just sighed, shaking his head at how childish they were.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Though, apparently, Akashi had another idea.

King Akashi showed up the moment the curtain was open, not even letting the narrator to start the scene first which was shown with- _"What the—?!"_ –strangled voice coming from the sound system, ultimately to the surprise of the people at the backstage and the excitement of the audiences.

"I begin to really like that king!" one of the male audiences whispered in enthusiasm.

"He's a bit scary, but he and the wizard make a very funny pair onstage!" one of the girls giggled excitedly.

" _My Crown Prince is getting too attached to the doll this past years."_ King Akashi paced back and forth with hand on his chin, seeming to think seriously. _"Spending almost every night with Doll Princess… exactly what is he doing there?"_

"Uwaaah… the king is worried about his son turning _a hentai_ for a doll…" Takao commented tediously while Kasamatsu was trying very hard to stay calm despite the bubble of chortle that threatened to explode. Himuro though, wasn't so discreet with his amused chuckle.

" _Your Majesty,"_ Royal Guard Murasakibara suddenly showed up.

"So tall!" one of the audience gasped, the others murmured in surprise as well.

"Aaaa…! Even Murasakibara is onstage!" Furihata was ready to pass out for real now, seeing another GoM member there.

"Why is everyone from the GoM showing up in Kuroko and Kagami's class drama?!" Kawahara and the others were bowled over by this.

"It's hopeless… this class drama will be destroyed for sure…!"

"Atsushi… so cool…!" Himuro couldn't help his heart fluttering at the sight of the overly tall purple haired boy acting despite looking fully uninterested.

"Oh, good God! This can't be real…!" Kasamatsu shook his head in incredulity as Takao burst out laughing (again).

King Akashi turned around slightly to the very tall purple haired boy with shoulder length hair that was tied up neatly behind, accentuating his very manly and handsome look. _"What… it's just Atsushi."_

" _Murasakibara at your service, my King,"_ Guard Murasakibara corrected as he knelt with one knee looking up at Akashi in bored look. _"As your command, I shall protect the Crown Prince from now on."_

" _Well, I haven't said anything about protecting anyone, though. Still, I can use some eyes, since something seems to be disturbing the castle at night."_ Akashi said while the audience threw him a strange look.

"Wait, the line doesn't add up?" some people looked at each other oddly.

" _Ahem."_ The narrator cut in, pilfering the audiences' focus from the stage. _"It appears that, some strange rumors began to spread among the guards who patrolled the castle at night."_

And like a signal, some random nameless guards showed up, walking from side stage to the _other_ side stage behind Akashi and Murasakibara, speaking rather loudly.

" _Did you know? Some people claimed to hear strange noises at the north castle every night."_

" _Ah, the place where the Doll Princess is stored?"_

" _Doll Princess?"_ one of them snorted at the name.

" _But the doll looks really alive, you know. People said it could actually move."_

" _Good lord. That's just terror."_ Some of them shuddered.

" _Hey, I really heard something when I patrolled near that room!"_

" _Cut it out. It's just rumor!"_

" _But, the Great Wizard Midorima warned King Akashi about it before, right?"_

" _Ah, I know. He said something about the doll possessing a soul or somewhat…"_

The guards looked at each other before hesitantly gradually stopping their walk.

" _That… can't be serious, right?"_

" _But, Crown Prince Kagami really loves that Doll Princess."_

" _I heard some maids even claimed that the doll position changed every day."_

" _Prince Kagami must have moved it."_

" _But wouldn't be it creepy if Doll Princess really moved by herself?"_

" _You're calling it 'her' now?"_

" _Stop gossiping, seriously! The doll is just a doll!"_

" _But if it moved… wouldn't it suck your soul out so it could be human?"_

" _Dear god, you guys are hopeless!"_

" _But, really… is it okay for the Crown Prince to huddle himself alone with the doll every day? What if he was enchanted by the doll?"_

Then the guards were off stage while still blabbering and gossiping about Doll Princess and Prince Kagami, leaving King Akashi and Guard Murasakibara alone onstage once again.

There was heavy silence for almost ten seconds before King Akashi face-palmed. _"My Crown Prince turns into a pervert for a doll."_

The comment earned him a union of side-splitting cackles from the audiences, some snorting and some doubling over from their seat.

"That's what he's worried about?!" some guys couldn't help nitpicking at the line, gaping at King Akashi preposterously.

"What about the moving doll that can suck out souls? Isn't that more important and dangerous?!"

"I guess that's why it's romantic comedy, huh…?"

Then the mirthful absurd guffaw continued for a moment until Wizard Midorima wound up onstage again, glaring exasperatedly at Akashi. _"Your Majetsy! You can't do this!"_

" _Do what exactly?"_ King Akashi threw him a confused look while Guard Murasakibara stood up to step back as Midorima towered in front of the king.

" _I already warned you about the Doll Princess having a soul! You can't exile her just because of that!"_ Wizard Midorima huffed.

" _I didn't say anything about exiling Doll Princess Kuroko."_ King Akashi deadpanned.

…

…

" _Oh."_ Wizard Midorima's face flushed as he realized his mistake. Takao cracked jovially on his seat, causing the others to start laughing as well at Wizard Midorima's expense. _"W-well!"_ his ears still pink as he continued, apparently trying to save his face and the play that was beyond saving from the absurdity. _"I just saw it in my premonition dream that you will exile Doll Princess!"_ he exclaimed.

"Nice… Great Wizard and his omen from a dream, huh?" the girls giggled because the wizard was just so cute speaking out a classic line.

" _Oh, you certainly give me the idea, Great Wizard. That doll must have been cursed. My Crown Prince has taken too much liking to it. I am afraid he is totally enchanted. He must be separated from that doll."_ King Akashi decided with a light punch on his palm.

" _Your Majesty! That doll is my masterpiece, like my own child! If you send her away, it will surely break my heart!"_ Wizard Midorima, even though he seemed very reluctant to say those very embarrassing lines, his tone was quite dramatic, causing Takao to fall from his seat, laughing his ass off while punching the floor.

"Oh, my GAWD, Shin-chan! T-that's just so… so… HILARIOUS! Ahahahahahahaha!"

"Takao, calm down, will you?" Kasamatsu felt self-conscious as large groups of eyes stared at their direction murderously. In the end Takao muffled his guffaw by drowning his face on his seat, his body still shaking violently from the mirth and hilarity.

King Akashi muttered something about _"Who cared about that tsundere heart of yours"_ totally earning demonstrative snickers from the audiences, before the red head coughed and started speaking again, _"There are also rumors that Doll Princess is actually alive and sucking soul."_ He showed a grim look now.

Wizard Midorima looked upward in surprise. _"That is not… true."_

" _What was that pause, oh Great Wizard?"_ Guard Murasakibara seemed jaded that he was left out of the conversation, so he had to speak up something.

Wizard Midorima gave the taller purple head an irritated glare. He seemed about to scowl at him that he was not allowed speaking so freely like that to him, but Akashi cut before he could.

" _Yes, what was that pause?"_

Now Wizard Midorima turned back to King Akashi whose eyebrows were raised. _"Indeed, there is some black magic that can turn doll into souls-prison, but-"_

" _There, you have the fact,"_ King Akashi smirked, cutting the wizard's explanation.

Wizard Midorima seethed. _"Doll Princess wasn't made of black magic."_

" _There's still a possibility that you made a mistake in making her."_ King Akashi turned his back on the green haired mage.

" _Are you telling me I'm incompetent in doing my job?"_ Apparently, Wizard Midorima was seriously offended by that patronizing statement.

" _You are a Great Wizard, Midorima. Of course you are excellent at what you do. But… you are just a human like the rest of us. Human can make mistakes,"_ King Akashi turned once again to give Midorima an understanding gaze.

Wizard Midorima blinked, seeming to be taken aback by the king's astute look.

" _But more than anything, what worries me most is Prince Kagami getting too drawn in to a doll. He's my Crown Prince, my successor. Instead of playing with a doll, I wish he'd be more involved with my Kingdom, making friends outside, learning how to govern this land."_ King Akashi looked at the ceiling somberly. _"Prince Kagami is not a child anymore. He already stopped calling Doll Princess 'mother' for weeks now. It is the time for him to part with that doll for his own good. He needs some social skill with fellow humans, not a doll."_

" _Your Majesty…"_ Wizard Midorima's expression softened. It seemed that he understood the king's worry.

" _I know he loves that Doll. But in the end, Doll Princess is just a doll. This land and its people are more important than her. Prince Kagami can't be distracted. I want that doll gone from this castle tomorrow. My Wizard, she is your creation. I leave her in your care."_ King Akashi looked straightly at Wizard Midorima once again, looking determined and serious.

Wizard Midorima was silent for a moment before letting out an acquiescent sigh. _"Understood. Then, I will bring her out of this castle myself."_

" _And so, following the king's order, the Great Wizard picked up Doll Princess from her private chamber, to bring her away from the castle and from Prince Kagami."_ The Narrator spoke while Wizard Midorima was getting off stage.

In turn, Young Prince Kagami showed up, strutting towards King Akashi with a clear protest on his face.

" _Father! My Lord! Please reconsider your decision! This isn't fair! Why are you exiling Kuroko?!"_

King Akashi glanced at him almost impersonally. _"The way you call her like that is the main reason."_ He responded.

" _Pardon?"_ Young Prince Kagami looked confused.

" _Are you even aware of how you look at Doll Princess Kuroko, my son?"_ King Akashi asked back.

" _What are you talking about?"_ the young prince was more perplexed now.

" _You are growing up, my Prince. You are my Crown Prince, and yet you are more concerned about a doll rather than maximizing your preparation to succeed my place in the future,"_ King Akashi reprimanded.

Young Prince Kagami looked snubbed. _"You are mistaken, Father. I care about my duty too! It's just… Kuroko is like a shadow for me! She has been with me since I was a child! You can't send her away!"_ the prince argued with much conviction, earning him the audiences respect at once.

King Akashi narrowed his eyes at his crown prince. _"I am always right, Son. I certainly can, and I am sending her away. Rather than indulging yourself with an inanimate object, you should socialize more. Right, why don't we hold a ball tomorrow night and invite some beautiful princess from other kingdoms? I'm sure you will find someone that suits your taste."_ He smiled then, even though his smile was rather creepy.

The young prince gasped. _"Father! I am still thirteen! What are you thinking?!"_ he definitely looked aghast.

" _Wrong. You are already 13. You should be interested in opposite gender."_ Akashi insisted, his smile slowly turning into a smirk. Young prince Kagami flinched slightly seeing it.

" _M-my Lord, you… you are just jealous because I get to spend more time with Kuroko! You are so unreasonable! Father, you are cruel! Waaaah!"_ and thus the young prince threw tantrum like a child he was, storming off in frustration because for once, he couldn't have what he wanted.

" _Well, isn't he just adorable? Fufufu,"_ King Akashi smiled fondly at the retreating crying figure.

 _That king is a total tease!_ —in unison, everyone in the great hall thought seeing king Akashi's amused look.

" _Your Majesty,"_ Guard Murasakibara addressed the king again, earning him King Akashi's attention.

" _Huh, Murasakibara, you're still there?"_ King Akashi raised his eyebrow.

" _Well, I don't know what to do if you don't give me your order, My Lord,"_ the tall guard said.

" _Oh, right. Very well. I want you to keep an eye on my Crown Prince, since he's so stubborn. Just make sure to protect him from harm, no matter if it comes from outside force or from himself,"_ King Akashi ordered and Guard Murasakibara straightened his body and bowed.

" _Yes, My Lord."_

"Why do I keep remembering anime 'Kuroshitsuji' when they call the king 'My Lord'…?" Koganei asked, sweating slightly. Mitobe shook his head anxiously beside him.

"I'm surprised you're so knowledgeable about it, Koga…" Tsuchida observed with an uneasy smile.

"Sei-chan… you've really done it, huh…" Mibuchi could only cover his forehead, feeling rather dizzy with all the insanity. He just hoped that it wouldn't make it into paper or anything, or Rakuzan's name would be in jeopardy.

" _And just like that,"_ again, the Narrator spoke, this time, actually, to close the scene instead of opening it. _"Doll Princess's name was banned to be mentioned inside the castle so as not to remind the crown prince. However, despite Prince Kagami's effort to get her back, she was still sent away from the kingdom to some far away land, hidden deep inside the forest, guarded tightly by the Great Wizard's magic so no one would be able to set foot near the personal fortress that he had built for her and for her only..."_

**End of Chapter 10**

**Tbc…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for cutting the play here. I still have a chapter (or more) to tell the play. For some reasons, this wasn't as funny as the previous, but I hope it's hilarious enough for you *grins* and also, I have so much fun making this! XD  
> Oh yeah, I have to inform you guys that I will be on hiatus for at least two weeks after this, since my works need my entire focus on them, at least until the crisis pass. Don't worry. I'll be back as soon as I can. I don't know when I will be able to update again, but hopefully not so long after the hiatus.  
> Now, feedback time, everyone! See you again in next chapter!


	11. The Quest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, the Prince starts to look for his princess...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, man… I'm so-so-so sorry for leaving you guys in the dark for the past two weeks. I had been hospitalized since March 17th. Typhoid fever, the test result said. It was quite bad. I couldn't eat or drink without turning them into chicken food minutes later. Could barely wake up, let alone stare at computer/laptop screen without feeling like throwing up every time. Just got back home yesterday (thankfully, feeling better) after getting medicated and re-hydrated for ten days. Though, I couldn't help wondering where I caught the bug. I meant, I'm always careful of what I eat. Maybe my nephew gave it to me. Last time I saw him, he had the same disease, sheesh.  
> Anyway, sorry for keeping you wait. Here's the new chapter of this story! I typed it as fast as I could and didn't exactly (double or triple) check it like I usually do for any mistake, so there is probably a LOT of them in this chapter. Well, I hope it's still fun to read. ENJOY!
> 
>  
> 
> **Disclaimer and Warning: _See chapter 1!_**

  
**Chapter 11:** _**The Quest**_  


* * *

Somewhere near the entrance to the backstage…

A girl with long wavy blond hair was seething as she spied into the room. "Damn it…! What's the meaning of this?" She narrowed her gaze furiously at the Class 2B students who were busy preparing for the next act.

"Akashi, you bastard! Quit doing whatever you want and destroying the plot! That scene just now was supposed to happen after my and Aomine's act, damn it! Now we have to jump to several scenes! Thanks to you I lost some onstage time with Kuroko because that kid had to replace me since you showed up too early! Now my image as a prince will be that of a wimp!" The tall red-brown haired boy with white royal suit shouted and ranted at the smaller red head dressed as a king.

"As if I would let you get all cuddly and lovey-dovey with Tetsuya onstage… over my dead body, you hoodwink," the king, Akashi, only frowned nonchalantly while throwing soft (and yet it implicated a very harsh) insult at the taller, Kagami.

There was current of electricity passing and running between the two boys as Kagami glowered at the shorter who just narrowed his sharp strange dichromatic eyes icily back at him, while the mysterious blond girl watched them stringently from afar.

It seemed that the players didn't get along, but… _Wait a—, who the hell are those guys?!_ —the girl bit her thumb nail frenetically.

She already ensured that some players couldn't perform, so the Class 2B play would be cancelled, but somehow stupid miracle happened and now there were five gorgeous boys substituting those absent students!

Of course, at first glance the play looked absolutely bizarre, but the audiences obviously loved it judging from their ecstatic reaction! This was preposterous! Unacceptable! As if she would lose to that infuriating Sasaki…!

The small red haired guy, Akashi, turned to face her direction suddenly and she immediately jumped back to hide because she didn't want to be spotted. Though, she was a second too late because Akashi's foxy mismatched eyes caught hers.

Akashi smiled at her and she thought her heart almost stopped because _damn_! That smile was like a hot laser beam. It was… _blazing,_ almost melting her instantly. Luckily, she was only exposed for a moment as she immediately turned and ran away from there.

_Darn you Class 2B! I will file a complaint about this! Just watch it!_

#

"Stop bickering, you two! Kagami-kun, you're up! Aomine-kun as well!" Sasaki shouted at Kagami to move his ass away from Akashi as the curtain was ready to open again.

"I won't lose, Akashi!" Kagami snarled heatedly before he hurried to go onstage.

Sasaki sighed exhaustedly while closing her eyes. "Jeez… guys. It's not even reaching the middle of the story line…"

"Chinatsu."

Sasaki opened her eyes to look up at Akashi who had ceremoniously approached her and— _did he just call me with my first name?_

"Yes?" She smiled at him, because Akashi was unquestionably brilliant even though his personality was rather hard to handle, what with his 'absolutely do not defy me' act. She sure as hell couldn't do a single damn thing about it because that was the deal. Thank god all her players were awesome at improvising to follow his lead no matter how outrageous it was.

"I think I know who tried to sabotage your class play," Akashi informed with a calculative smirk.

"You do?" Sasaki was surprised. Well, _okay_ , not really, because she herself already had an idea of who would go this far to sabotage her glory, but she still needed some kind of second opinion and _proof_ if she could help it before she was allowed to make any accusation.

"Yes, and I will tell you the description of the suspect, but in one condition," Akashi proposed, looking visibly expectant for some reason.

 _Another deal?_ —Sasaki knew that Akashi was the kind of person that liked manipulating other people through transaction, but as long as it was beneficial for her, she was willing to strike it.

"Let's hear it," Sasaki nodded.

"I want that kissing scene between the prince and the Doll Princess ripped out of this drama." Akashi didn't seem to vacillate at all as he presented his proviso.

Unfortunately, she couldn't comply this time. "I'm sorry, but I have to decline that proposition," Sasaki immediately replied without shilly-shallying as well. "That scene is the most important part, the climax, of this play. It can't be replaced by any other scene, so no deal."

Akashi seemed displeased with her answer, but she wouldn't budge, even though the simmering annoyance in Akashi's eyes was quite burning a hole through Sasaki's head. More than confirming her suspicion about who sabotaged their class' drama, the feat of the play was more crucial to her. Without that kissing scene, there would be no impact.

Besides, it was the damn time for both Kagami and Kuroko to just realize that they were perfect for each other. Some pushing from her… _them_ , their classmates, and official blessing from the entire school (and people outside the school) were essential or else those two dense basketball idiots wouldn't do anything about it, in spite of realizing their feeling towards each other.

"Very well, but I will make that scene gone amid or devoid of your consent, still." Akashi warned.

"You're free to try." Sasaki felt challenged. It was a test for her directing skill. Akashi could do whatever he wanted onstage, but the flow of the plot would still run according to her course. Because… all the students in Class 2B supported their _main characters'_ improvement in their stagnant relationship.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Another act was opened along with the curtain onstage, revealing Prince Kagami, now grown up and towering with his 190 cm height, together with his supposedly best friend, a taller, tanner, sexy prince with dark blue hair and midnight colored eyes who turned the female audiences' (except maybe Momoi or Riko) brains into mush as he smiled seductively at them.

"Oh, WOW! Who is that alluring, delicious-looking guy?!" the girls instantly flushed and fussed at Prince Aomine's emergence.

"Holy shit! Do we have that kind of guy here in Seirin?!" the guys were officially staggered.

 _It's Aomineeeee!_ —Seirin's basketball team once again, gawped at the scene in total shock. Sakurai fainted with foam on his mouth and Momoi covered her crimson face in embarrassment.

"To think that Aomine as well ends up onstage…" Riko felt like turning catatonic while her facial muscles twitched restlessly in disbelief.

" _Several years later, Prince Kagami had grown up to be a splendid crown prince. His best friend whom he met when they were 13, Prince Aomine, was often spotted together with him. They were practically inseparable since their first meeting. Moreover, Prince Kagami and Prince Aomine were known as the strongest and the gentlest princes that had ever existed in the land. All kind of girls worshipped them. Though, strangely Prince Kagami didn't seem to have any interest in them while Prince Aomine was quite a Casanova in his own kingdom._

" _Even though Prince Kagami was still missing his shadow, Doll Princess Kuroko, he learnt to forgive his father because he knew the king loved him and just wanted the best for him. Furthermore, his father got a point. He still had more important things to do as the successor of the throne. However, Prince Kagami couldn't forget about Doll Princess Kuroko, so he kept searching for her when he had free time. Over and over in the last ten years with the cover of hunting that was backed up by his closest friend, Prince Aomine."_ The narrator explained the summary of the missing ten years that happened off stage before the real conversation started.

" _I can't believe you don't get tired of looking for a doll. It's been ten years already. Seriously, how juvenile are you?"_ Prince Aomine ridiculed him when he and Prince Kagami seemed to get ready for the 'hunt' in the woods.

" _Shut up. You don't have to tag along every time, you know,"_ Prince Kagami scowled at Prince Aomine, looking annoyed.

" _No, well… I just can't stop laughing inwardly at how outlandish it is when you're frustrated at another yet again fruitless attempt to find that doll,"_ Prince Aomine snickered sarcastically.

" _And you claimed to be my best friend, really?"_ Prince Kagami threw a dirty look at the over tanned prince after rolling his eyes. Prince Aomine snorted at that.

" _Ah, you wound me. Who was it again, that clung to me like a life line when we got lost at our previous hunt?"_ Prince Aomine then grinned arrogantly at Prince Kagami.

" _You wish,"_ Prince Kagami gave him a light punch on the arm, flushing slightly in exasperation. Aomine cackled mirthfully.

" _But… ten years, huh? You're such a stubborn ass, you know that?"_ Aomine shook his head. _"Why don't you just ask the Great Wizard Midorima of where the doll is? He's the one who hid it, right?"_

Kagami sighed slightly. _"God knows how many times I tried. He's just as obstinate as my father about keeping it a secret. I don't even know why. There's no harm in me finding Kuroko, is there?"_

" _Well, seeing as how infatuated you are with that Doll Princess, I short of understand your father's worry,"_ Prince Aomine chuckled.

" _What are you trying to imply, Aomine?"_ Prince Kagami narrowed his gaze at the tan prince in accusation.

" _That you have fallen for a cursed doll, my prince. I bet you compare all the women that try to gain your attention to your beloved Doll Princess Kuroko."_ Prince Aomine shook his head while suppressing hilarity.

" _Kuroko is not cursed. And what do you mean I compare all the girls to her? I'd rather choose my own sister to compare them to. They can't even compete with her,"_ Prince Kagami huffed, looking almost sulking.

" _Ahah, speaking about your sister… I heard Princess came back after years of private studying to be a lady. Last time we saw each other was what… three or four years ago?"_ Prince Aomine then looked around, suddenly seeming to be interested in finding the said princess.

" _Three and a half precisely, and yes, she just came back last night."_

" _So… where is she?"_ Prince Aomine asked then, looking slightly eager for some reason.

" _How should I know? I'm not her caretaker, you know."_ Prince Kagami grumbled.

" _What is that? I thought you were so fond of her before."_ Prince Aomine raised his eyebrows, apparently surprised.

" _I still am. It's just… she's not a kid anymore as well. This year she's turning 18. She's ready to take a man as a husband. Can't be too clingy to her own brother, can she?"_ Prince Kagami made an excuse, though he sounded bothered at some point.

" _Of course… I understand just fine that you have a sister complex,"_ Prince Aomine totally laughed at that, patting Prince Kagami's shoulder teasingly.

" _Please shut up."_ Prince Kagami kicked him on the shin this time, blushing again.

" _Alright then, shall we go 'hunting' some dolls?"_ Prince Aomine offered his hand in a mocking gesture, trying to mimic gentleman vainly.

" _The hell is that supposed to mean?"_ Prince Kagami slapped the offered hand, grumbling. _"I'm not a goddamn woman."_

Prince Aomine guffawed at the reaction, along with the audiences.

" _Both princes were ready to go to the 'hunt',"_ the narrator spoke in interlude. _"However, before they could reach the outside of the castle yard, someone stopped them."_

" _Ah, p-please wait a second, Aniue (1)!"_

Prince Aomine and Prince Kagami blinked as the extremely (faked) high voice was heard from the side of the stage. Then, a very tall princess with shoulder-length wavy blond hair entered the scene.

Prince Aomine and Kagami almost popped their eyes out of their sockets seeing a very girly and gorgeous Princess Kise, despite the height, with her sophisticated, long-sleeved, puffy, yellow long dress that covered her from neck to toe. A golden tiara perched on her hair and she looked really pretty with long golden eyelashes and warm amber eyes that looked upward shyly at her brother and his friend.

The entire hall was stunned silence for a few seconds, even the players who were definitely tongue-tied at such grand appearance.

Kasamatsu's eyes turned white.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! It's KISE-KUUUUUUUN!"

Okay, maybe Kise's fans immediately recognized him and screamed bloody murder at his appearance onstage, and that snapped the players out of their shocked trance.

" _Ki-… Princess Kise?"_ Prince Aomine rubbed his eyelids with disbelief written all over his face while Prince Kagami was still gaping like a fish out of water.

" _Ah, g-good day for you, Prince Aomine,"_ Princess Kise lifted her skirt for a bit and bowed gracefully at Aomine and the audience, especially the girls, shrieked even louder at how beautiful and elegant Kise was and he made such a perfect princess even though he was very tall.

The disciplinary committee had a very hard time calming them down. Curse the power of fan girls!

" _Kise…"_ Prince Kagami finally called her name and Princess Kise smiled at him sweetly.

" _Aniue, it's been awhile,"_ Princess Kise moved a few strides forward, but she stepped on the hem of her long dress and tripped. _"Ah!"_

" _Whoah!"_ Luckily, Prince Aomine was ready to catch her before she fell. Princess Kise ended falling to Prince Aomine's embrace.

" _Oh, I-I'm sorry!"_ Princess Kise flushed slightly, her face turning rather pink as she looked upward at Prince Aomine who seemed too astonished to even react to such endearing gesture.

"KYAAAAAA! So CUUUUUUUUUUUTE!" the fan girls roared again almost hysterically in Prince Aomine's place, but the other audiences tried to shush them albeit futilely, because they were dying to know of what would happen next in the play.

Surprisingly, Prince Aomine was quick to bury his amazement and commented. _"Despite being such a beauty now, you're still all thumbs, my Princess,"_ he chuckled before pulling Princess Kise to straighten up, and then he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of her palm. _"Welcome home."_ Then he gazed gently and sexily at the princess who immediately gasped and her face colored instantly in a darker shade of red.

" _P-Prince Aomine…!"_ Princess Kise seemed bewildered, looking very embarrassed and flattered at the same time.

" _Oi!"_ Prince Kagami, though, immediately gave a light chop on Prince Aomine's head with his gloved hand, breaking the moment between his friend and her sister. _"Stop trying to seduce my sister, you evil man. She'll get pregnant if you stare at her like that."_

" _W-wha—?!"_ both Prince Aomine and Princess Kise sputtered in reaction. _"As if people could get pregnant like that! Are you a retard?!"_

" _Aniue, you barbaric buffoon!"_

Prince Kagami rolled his eyes as the spectators once again laughed at their ridiculous dialogue.

"Oh, god, save me! They are just so too damned funny!" Takao was positive he would die laughing if this kept up. He hadn't stopped guffawing since the previous scene after all, and he cackled harder as Kise and Aomine acted like puppies finding possible future mates.

"Oh, man, that dumbass Kise…! What are you doing…?" Kasamatsu face palmed. He couldn't see this. What would he do if this made into paper? Although Kasamatsu wasn't Kaijou's student anymore, he was still an alumnus, and he would die of embarrassment if their school name became a laughing stock because of Kise's stupidity.

" _So, why are you looking for me?"_ Prince Kagami's voice brought the audience back to the play, as the dialogues went on.

" _Ah, yes… I heard that you and Prince Aomine would go hunting. I'd like to come along,"_ Princess Kise gave her brother sparkling puppy eyes, causing the both princes to twitch.

" _You can't."_ Prince Kagami huffed, not swayed despite how adorable his sister looked.

" _Aww, please? It's been awhile since I went outside the castles. I want to get a change of scenery sometimes too,"_ Princess Kise whined.

" _Still no. It's dangerous in the forest. Moreover, we will go on horses. You can't ride one by yourself, can you?"_ Prince Kagami gave the blond princess a raising eyebrow and Princess Kise pouted slightly.

" _B-but… I want to play with you guys… because it's been awhile since we go somewhere together, and I miss you…"_ Princess Kise sniffled slightly now, aiming her watery, very pitiful and yet powerful, pleading gaze to both Prince Kagami and Prince Aomine who seemed to melt at the look.

Well, the audiences certainly couldn't blame them. They were metaphorically melting as well, turning into a puddle of goo, staining the great hall seats.

Prince Kagami could only hold on for so long before he gave in. He always did. _"Fine. But you're not riding alone."_ He sighed.

Princess Kise perked at that and jumped to hug him. _"I love you, Aniue!"_

" _Yes, yes,"_ Prince Kagami patted her back awkwardly before pushing her to Prince Aomine hands. _"So, Aomine. Take care of my sister."_

" _You said I wasn't allowed to even look at her,"_ Prince Aomine stared at Prince Kagami ridiculously.

" _I only said you were capable of getting her pregnant just by looking, I didn't say I was against the idea you taking her as your wife,"_ Prince Kagami smirked while both Prince Aomine and Princess Kise spluttered once more, their faces turning scarlet.

" _Aniue!"_

" _Kagami!"_

The audiences giggled and squealed at that cute and funny scene.

" _And so, Prince Kagami, together with Prince Aomine and Princess Kise went on a hunt together to the border of the kingdom, where the Dark Forest that surrounded the kingdom stood still and unchanging for the past hundreds of years."_ The narrator gave another signal to change the scene as the curtain was closed and once again opened, revealing the setting of forest.

" _We have never gone this deep before,"_ Prince Aomine commented, looking around nonchalantly.

" _The horses always refuse to come this far inside the forest after all,"_ Prince Kagami muttered, sounding rather annoyed for some reasons.

" _T-then why are we going so far this time?"_ Princess Kise seemed scared as she held Prince Aomine's arm tighter. _"There were some antelopes and deer earlier. Why didn't you take them?"_

Prince Kagami scratched the back of his neck slightly as Prince Aomine snickered. _"Your brother here has an obsession."_

" _Obsession?"_ Princess Kise tilted her head sideway to look upward at Prince Aomine confusedly.

" _Aomine,"_ Prince Kagami threw the dark-blue haired prince a warning glare.

Aomine smirked. _"He's looking for something special, you see."_

" _Not a word, Aomine!"_ Prince Kagami glared harder and grimmer, but Prince Aomine didn't seem to care as he kept chuckling.

" _What is it?"_ Princess Kise looked very curious.

" _It's nothing."_ Prince Kagami turned away from his sister's suspicious gaze.

" _It's not 'nothing' if Aniue acts like that. Is this something illegal?"_ the princess pouted, looking back and forth between Prince Aomine and Prince Kagami.

" _In a way, it is a taboo."_ Prince Aomine grinned.

" _Aomine, zip it already,"_ Prince Kagami scowled at his friend.

" _A taboo…?"_ Princess Kise seemed to mull over it before she jerked up in surprise. _"No way, Aniue! Are you still looking for 'that'?"_

" _That?"_ Prince Kagami frowned, seemingly unnerved.

" _That,"_ Princess Kise refused to call the name. _"Father has forbidden its name to be mentioned in our kingdom since a decade ago, Aniue, since its exile. Father won't be pleased if he finds out you're still looking for it,"_ the princess set a very serious face now.

" _Don't you think I know that?"_ Prince Kagami didn't face his younger sister and kept walking forward.

" _Then why?"_ Princess Kise seemed perplexed. _"Why are you so adamant to find it?"_

Prince Kagami was silent and his expression turned slightly melancholic and nostalgic and the audiences were moved of how sincere the prince looked at that time, portraying how much he thought and cared about Doll Princess his entire life.

Suddenly, a sweep of colorful light clashed the stage, immediately followed by a big bellowing voice. _"Human…! There are humans in my territory!"_

" _What is that?!"_ Prince Kagami and Aomine immediately drew their swords out and crowded the squeaking Princess Kise to protect her from the owner of that voice, in total alert.

" _Who is there?!"_ Prince Aomine shouted dramatically and the girls swooned at how heroic he looked.

" _I'm the guardian of this forest. Who are you insolences that dare to cross the border of my land?"_ the mysterious voice spoke again interrogatingly.

" _Your land? This forest is still inside the border of my kingdom! Show yourself, coward!"_ Prince Kagami spat, eyes as intense as a wild tiger's that caused the audiences to gasp in awe.

"Oh, sheesh! This is sooo cooool!" the male audiences were getting as excited as the girls now.

" _What a boorish guests…! Fine, I'll show you 'myself' and let it be your worst nightmare!"_

The stage was filled with smoky dry ice now, and the light dimmed into a hazy purple glow as something moved from the side of the stage and a spotlight appeared, illuminating a figure that sat cross-legged on one of the props that acted as a branch of a big tree.

A guy with blue eyes and dark hair with wolfish ears and fangs and paws and tails smirked while looking down on the three people onstage.

" _W-what is that?!"_ Princess Kise pointed at the wolf-man with a frightened look as Prince Aomine and Prince Kagami faced the creature directly.

" _You've got nerves to cross the demon land, humans. Be prepared to become prey to all the monsters of this forest,"_ the creature smiled wickedly before he whistled as suddenly a lot of other creatures emerged from inside the great hall, including from the side stage and the audiences' seat.

"GWAAAAAAH!"

"Oh My GOD!"

"Where the hell did they come from?!"

"KYAAAAAAA!"

"Holy CRAP!"

"Oh, SHIT!"

The audiences cursed repeatedly in terrorized wonder, completely not seeing this coming at all. They didn't expect to get involved in the play this way, but their shocked reaction seemed to be expected.

" _We're surrounded!"_ Prince Kagami jumped forward and slashed one of the monsters down. Prince Aomine followed soon, jumping and made a slashing motion around to keep some creature away from Princess Kise behind him.

" _Kagami! We shouldn't separate!"_

" _I know!"_ Prince Kagami slashed monster after monster, but they didn't seem to recede in numbers. Their numbers were overwhelming!

"Wait, wait, wait a damn minute! Isn't this supposed to be romance-comedy genre? Why are there monsters and action scene?!" some of the spectators protested.

"Who cares as long as it's interesting!" others resolutely ignored how much further this play ran away from its original script.

" _Nooooo!"_ Princess Kise's grotesque scream was heard as one of the plant monster hybrids got her, surrounding her with some kind of slimy tentacles.

" _Damn! Princess Kise!"_ Prince Aomine tried to reach to save her, but she was quickly pulled away before his hand could grab hers.

" _A-Aomine-chiiii!"_ then Princess Kise was pulled to the darkness of off-stage.

" _Kiseeeeee!"_ Prince Aomine roared as he struggled to go after the creature that had taken his princess, but then he was trapped by some kind of net falling from above, apparently courtesy of some kind of spider monster hybrid. _"Let me go, damn it!"_ the more he struggled, the more the net restrained his movement and in the end he was completely immobile before he was lifted by a lot of monsters to be brought to the realm of off-stage.

" _Aomine! Kise!"_ Prince Kagami seemed to panic as his best friend and sister were taken away, and there were a lot more monsters around him now. _"Let go of my companions, you fiends!"_ he tried to cut a lot more, but his swords were slapped away and he was immediately restrained, forced to kneel down while being manhandled by the creatures that were actually smaller and shorter than him, but since they were innumerable, Prince Kagami couldn't move.

" _Can't say anything much now, can you?"_ the wolf-man on the tree now laid down on his stomach leisurely, drawling lazily at Prince Kagami who glared daggers at him.

" _Let go of my friend and my sister!"_ Prince Kagami growled hatefully at him and the wolf-man snorted.

" _Is that the right request? Shouldn't you be saying 'Mercy! Please spare my life and let me go'?"_

" _Let go of Aomine and Kise!"_ Prince Kagami didn't take the mocking tone and the bait.

The baleful laughter of the wolf-man from the tree filled the stage right then, causing the spectators to cringe slightly. _"All of you are the same. In the end you will just beg for your own life to be spared by leaving behind the others, the ones you're supposed to love, the one who's supposed to love you. But you seem different. How interesting. What would you trade for those lives, human?"_

" _You can take mine! I'm the crown prince of this kingdom! My head's more worthy for you than those two!"_ Prince Kagami grimaced. _"Just let them go."_

The wolf-man's amused smirked turned rather cold now. _"And what? Your life is worth more than those two combined? Then I should kill them. They are less worthy, right?"_

Prince Kagami visibly blanched. _"NO! No! You don't understand! Those two are innocent! I was the one who dragged them down into this forest! I forced them to come with me and trespass into your territory! All of the responsibilities are mine, so… let me handle the retribution!"_

" _Well, well, how gallant, how humble and gentle you are, Crown Prince Kagami. Very well. If you offered so keenly to take their places as my prey, I'll let you. All I ask is one thing. What is the name of this forest master?"_ the wolf-man asked then and Prince Kagami looked upward in surprise.

" _T-that's it?"_ Prince Kagami asked, looking completely baffled.

" _Yes. I kind of forgot the name of the master I was supposed to serve since he never showed up, not even once, after leaving us all out here to guard this land. If you give me his name, I'll release your companions, and I might as well lead you to a place you want most. Not a bad deal, right?"_ the wolf-man winked.

The audiences giggled at the change of attitude.

"Isn't he kind of sloppy for a forest guardian monster?" Hyuuga couldn't help commenting.

"I'm more worried about the sanity of the entire play…" Izuki responded dryly.

"Who cares?! He's funny!" Koga grinned widely because the play didn't turn out too bloody even with monsters-slaying and sword-fighting earlier.

"Do you prefer cute monsters, Hyuuga?" Kiyoshi asked the bespectacled teen, totally contemplating wearing a _Werecat_ costume with ears and tail and paws if it turned out that way.

"What's that gotten to do with this?" Hyuuga slapped at Kiyoshi's wandering hand again, pretty annoyed.

"Eh, I can be a sweet monster too, so Hyuuga will like me more," Kiyoshi grinned while snuggling the smaller teen care-freely.

"Why don't you try to die once, you moron!?"

"Shut up, you two! It's getting interesting here!" Riko threw her deadliest glare at the two idiots who immediately clamped up unless they wanted to get killed.

"Idiots." Both Izuki and Koganei and probably Tsuchida, along with the first years, snickered at Hyuuga and Kiyoshi's predicament. Mitobe just shook his head at them all.

As the play resumed, the narrator inserted another interlude. _"The crown prince was given a time to think of the answer of the forest guardian's question. He contemplated and thought about the answer carefully, since it involved his best friend and his sister's lives. Though, there was only one person, that Prince Kagami had ever known to possess a power, who could tame so many monsters as his own servants as well as became a master of the Dark Forest."_

" _Do I know this Forest Master?"_ Prince Kagami tried to get some hints, but the wolf-man just shrugged.

" _I haven't gone out from this forest for years, my Prince. How would I know?"_

Prince Kagami frowned, not getting as much hints as he wanted. But he seemed to think more before he nodded. _"Alright. I know who it is."_

" _Oh?"_ the wolf-man perked as he straightened his body up.

" _The most powerful person in this land…"_ Prince Kagami paused for the dramatic effect, making everyone hold their breath. _"Of course, it's the Great Wizard Midorima."_

The wolf-man widened his eyes for a moment before he exclaimed _"Oh! You broke the spell!"_ and the hall went into silence once before there was popping sound and suddenly the entire stage was filled with pink colored gas, surprising the audience because then they couldn't really see what happened on the stage.

"Hey, what's going on?!"

"What's with the pink smoke?"

"Oh, oh! Look! The stage!"

There seemed to be something going on the stage, some swarming figures moving, replacing all the dark settings and monsters with something else. When the smoke cleared, all the monsters were gone, and the setting looked brighter and cleaner. On the monsters' place were bunches of cute animals and little plants plushies that girls would usually swoon over.

" _Woof!"_

Prince Kagami let out a(n) (un)manly shriek at the sound of barking and he seemed about to run for his life when he noticed that the owner of the bark was none other than… _"Ni-Nigou!?"_ The prince looked totally indignant staring at the branch prop where the wolf-man should be, but found Nigou, a small husky with soft black and white fur and wide round blue eyes, sway his tail excitedly instead.

" _Woof!"_ Nigou barked once more before he jumped down from the tree prop and landed on Prince Kagami's chest and then started to lick his face all over.

" _Whoah! Calm down, boy! Calm down!"_ Prince Kagami then tried to bring the dog away from his now sticky face. _"Why are you here, Nigou…? I thought I asked the Great Wizard to take care of— huh? Impossible! Nigou! Don't tell me you were that wolf-man just now?!"_ the prince seemed enlightened as Nigou yapped twice, as if the dog agreed.

"How the hell could they train the dog to respond to conversation like that?!" All the dog-lovers drooled slightly at the scene.

"Oh, gawd~! This is getting better and better!" Some girls giggled more as they saw that Prince Kagami was surrounded by cute stuffed toys and talked to an adorable little dog. It was indeed amusing.

" _Woof! Woof!"_ Nigou struggled slightly from the prince's hold and Prince Kagami immediately put the dog down. _"Woof!"_ the dog pointed at the side stage with its paw before strutting there.

" _You mean I should follow you there? Wait, Nigou!"_ Prince Kagami hurriedly ran after the dog.

" _So, with a belief that Nigou would lead him to his friend and sister that were being held captive by the earlier monsters, Prince Kagami followed its step to go deeper inside the Dark Forest that wasn't so dark anymore now, behind the barrier that was also undone after the spell was broken by the prince. However, the crown prince didn't realize that he had been followed since he left the castle."_

A spotlight appeared once more on the other side of the side stage, revealing Guard Murasakibara who seemed to talk to someone via 'mirror'. Apparently, it was some kind magical communication device because something round appeared on the stage and King Akashi's face appeared on the round window.

" _My King, Crown Prince Kagami had just broken the barrier of the Dark Forest."_ Guard Murasakibara spoke to the small mirror in his hand and the king on the round window clicked his tongue.

" _I see… so he finally found his way to look for that thing."_ King Akashi seemed to think of something before he smiled. _"Keep me posted, Murasakibara. Continue to watch over my Crown Prince."_ He ordered after that.

" _Yes, my Lord."_ Guard Murasakibara closed the mirror and the curtain fell to close the scene.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

**Back stage—**

"Aaah~ this play is officially wrecked…!" Tamaki cried over the unused script because all the main players decided to do whatever they wanted to progress with the play.

"At least the audiences completely LOVE our play," Ayasaki tried to console by patting the brown haired girl's back reassuringly.

"We can still aim for the MVP (most favorite play), right? Since the jury won't nominate this disastrous play into the best category polling," Sasaki was completely aware of that, but like hell if she would just lay down and die. She was a positive thinking girl after all.

The three girls then stared rather dubiously at the players who were busy yelling and doing their business.

**#**

"Get me off of this thing!" Aomine was still struggling to free himself from the net.

"Eeeeeew! That's so disgustiiiiiing!" Kise swatted around the slimy tentacles which were still tangling on his dress and fake hair, totally failing.

"Anyone, please shut them up!" Midorima gritted his teeth in total irritation.

"Kagami-kun, let me fix your costume for a bit," Kuroko straightened Kagami's robe and clothes while Kagami was holding Nigou in the air so his hands and the dog wouldn't bother Kuroko.

"Hey, you come up after this, right?" Kagami asked, releasing one of his hands from holding Nigou's body in favor of fixing Kuroko's tiara that was a bit off to the side back to its rightful place at the center.

"Yes, now we get to say our dialogues and do our scene properly after this," Kuroko gave Kagami a small smile, smoothing over the crease on his chest.

Kagami flushed slightly. He knew exactly what dialogues and scene Kuroko had meant. "Yeah… but that's only gonna happen when they stop meddling halfway through the peak," he grumbled apprehensively peering at the all GoM before looking upward to see Akashi walking off of stage, turning and then glaring at him with his piercing foxy dichromatic eyes like a predator even though he was smaller than Kagami.

Kagami unconsciously ran his hand to Kuroko's back and pulled the smaller boy closer to him, holding him rather tightly, as he narrowed his eyes at Akashi, completely challenging him.

"Um… Kagami-kun," Kuroko tugged lightly at Kagami's sleeve and Kagami looked down to him only to see Kuroko's big sky blue eyes staring at him rather awkwardly, his cheeks painted faint pink.

"Oh," Kagami's face heated as well in surprised embarrassment as soon as he realized what he had done, before he hurriedly let go of Kuroko, floundering. "S-sorry!"

"No, it is alright… um, I better go… be ready," Kuroko seemed rather uncomfortable as he looked away and then hurriedly left, but that couldn't be. Kuroko never got flustered.

Kagami's heart beat harder for a second. _Oh, boy_. Nearing the scene that would be the climax of the play, Kagami couldn't help recalling the first two shared kisses between Kuroko and him during the rehearsal.

At that time, he definitely felt the spark when their lips met, Kuroko probably did too. He couldn't help imagine what he would feel if he kissed Kuroko again, _later_. He just hoped he didn't forget that it was a play and could act it out normally.

_But… why am I getting so excited about it?!_

Yes, Kagami was officially screwed.

**End of Chapter 11**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Additional Notes:**

**1)** _ **Aniue**_ **:** big brother (in the most formal way)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooh… I thought I wouldn't be able to post it today. I'm sorry for another cliffy. I actually wanted to put the climax of the drama here, but I figured that could be the highlight of next chapter. So, what do you think of this play? Indeed, the plot of the play didn't turn out like the script because all the GoM play blindly here *giggles* Maybe I'll include the original script play at the end of this story somewhere in the future, but I'll stick to this destroyed-drama-play ploy *snickers*. The reasons? I can add as many crazy scenes as I deem possible in there *dies laughing* Alright. Now, feedback time! See you in next chapter!


	12. A True Love Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally! The conclusion of the play is...?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the very long wait. I haven't been very active lately. Also thank you very much for all the comments and kudos as always, readers! Please just accept my virtual cookies and gratitude from here *chuu*. Now, let's enjoy this new chapter, shall we?  
>  **Disclaimer and Warning: _See chapter 1!_**

**Chapter 12: _A True Love Kiss_**

* * *

"Uh… finally we all come to this part…!" Sasaki was very giddy and slightly anxious because she knew Akashi would do everything he could to make the kiss scene disappear from the play. She gathered all the supporting characters closely to her and looked at them in the eyes. "We have to assist both Kagami-kun and Kuroko-kun and make sure they can perform all the dialogues and scenes in this act."

The boys who became the monsters in the previous act looked slightly uncomfortable, but they still nodded anyway, since they couldn't defy Sasaki's order or she would make them pay ten times over. Besides, they all agreed once that Kagami and Kuroko were indeed very good as a pair. It didn't mean they actually wanted to see the proof or the PDA, but—

"No worries. We will have your backs!" the girls gave the boys their nicest encouraging smile. The boys could only sigh in resignation as they looked at the party near the stage.

"Midorima-san, you will come out after Kagami-kun finishes his dialogue, and you aren't allowed to come out until it's the time, okay? I'll be here to guide you," a dark haired girl said, holding Midorima's sleeve just to make sure that he'd stay where he was whatever happened on stage later.

Midorima twitched slightly in visible indignation as he stared at the hand that firmly gripped his costume.

"Aomine-san and Kise-san, we will fix your attires and set this transparent _ribbon_ around you to give impression that you are 'bound' by magic, so you can't move freely on stage," three busty girls showed the material to both Aomine and Kise who visibly paled seeing the strange prop.

"Seriously…?" both boys couldn't help gaping in disbelief. "We're being tied up for real?"

"Yes, and please pretend to pass out, okay?" The girls' wide smile caused Aomine to groan while Kise could only laugh, sweating bullets.

"Akashi-san, do you have time for a bit? I think I will go over the lines for you once more. You want your acting to be perfect, don't you?" Sasaki chirped, beaming sweetly at the red haired teen, but judging from the glare he sent her way, he already knew that she was trying to distract him.

Still, Sasaki also knew that Akashi was a perfectionist (according to Kuroko anyway), so he had no choice but to comply. After all, he wouldn't ( _couldn't_ ) act less than flawlessly to satisfy his need and pride. Sasaki couldn't help thinking that Kuroko probably secretly wanted this particular scene to be perfect as well. After all, this scene was…

Sasaki smirked. "Ah, maybe Murasakibara-san can come here as well. You don't have dialogues in this scene, but your act is crucial, so…" and just like that she had Akashi and Murasakibara on her watch for the time being.

_Do your best, Kagami-kun… Kuroko-kun!_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

_"And so... Prince Kagami followed Nigou to the deepest part of the forest and found a hidden castle..."_ the narrator opened the next act as the pink gas that filled the stage slowly subsided. The stage was still dark for a few more seconds until the curtain was slowly opened and then a spotlight fell upon someone onstage. It was Prince Kagami standing in front of a background prop of a castle, surrounded with ivies and roses in rainbow colors.

_"Woof!"_ Nigou's bark was heard somewhere around Prince Kagami's feet.

_"So… this is the castle…"_ Prince Kagami breathed out in awe at the (supposedly) grand castle before his eyes. _"You're telling me that… my friends are being kept here?"_ the crown prince looked down at Nigou and the dog barked in agreement. _"Good boy, Nigou!"_

Prince Kagami squatted down to sweep Nigou up and then gave the dog a gentle hug before ruffling its head affectionately. Nigou yapped happily and the audience immediately swooned.

"Prince Kagami is just so sweet!" one of the female spectators squealed.

"Surprisingly… he looks scary at first glance, but he does look adorable now. The use of that dog really helps him show his inner _beauty_ well," another girl said observantly.

"He isn't really acting, actually," Himuro chuckled knowingly.

"I bet," Takao snickered. Kasamatsu only sighed in defeat after much obsessing about how to keep this 'Kise wearing women clothes scandal' a secret from mass media. Now, he acted like Kise's damned manager. Sheesh.

_"Now, we just have to go inside and look for them…!"_ Prince Kagami clenched his fist in front of his chest with a determined expression. Nigou barked loud once, as if cheering him.

_"My Prince…"_

Prince Kagami jolted in surprise, along with all the audiences who gasped when suddenly there was a soft clear voice echoing inside the great hall.

"Wha—!?"

"What was that?!"

"Whose voice is—?!"

_"My Prince…"_

Again, the voice called and Prince Kagami let Nigou down before he closed his eyes and covered his ears, apparently trying to listen to the voice better. _"This voice…"_ Prince Kagami whispered, seeming to remembering something from the past. _"I know this voice…"_ he said before letting his hands down, looking over the audiences' heads. _"My Doll Princess… Kuroko."_

Prince Kagami called the Doll Princess' name, his expression poignant and the audiences were instantly drawn to his acting (if it was an act at all) since it felt so real, as if Prince Kagami really missed the voice speaking to him even though there was no one there.

_"Finally… finally I am able to connect with you again…"_ the voice sounded very happy despite the light almost flat tone.

_"Yeah…"_ Prince Kagami softened his expression even more, smiling gently. _"I missed you very much… Does this mean you're near here, Kuroko? Where can I find you?"_ Now, the prince looked around, walking from side to side of the stage to search for Doll Princess' figure.

_"I am inside the castle, My Prince. I believe I am with your friend and sister,"_ Doll Princess replied tenderly.

_"Aomine and Kise are with you?"_ Prince Kagami looked surprised. _"Are they alright?"_

_"Yes, they are just unconscious."_

_"But… how come they are with you?"_ Prince Kagami seemed confused as he proceeded to walk 'entering' the castle. The background setting which was drawn in the cloth was lifted up, revealing the interior design of the castle.

_"I believe they have been captured by the same person that hid me here, My Prince,"_ Doll Princess' voice lowered, somehow sounding sad.

_"The one who hid you here… that means…"_ Prince Kagami's face darkened slightly. _"The Great Wizard, Midorima."_

_"I am afraid so. Be careful, My Prince. It is the first time in ten years after the barrier was built that someone actually tore it open and walked inside. He will not be pleased. He has been guarding this place for so long without any touch with other human being…"_ Now the voice sounded worried.

_"What? But I saw him several times before, in my castle, Kuroko. He spoke with my father regularly. The forest monsters and Nigou also mentioned that he had never shown up in the forest again since he ordered them to guard this place."_ Prince Kagami argued.

_"That is just a shadow of him. That person… Father's magic is powerful enough to manifest his own shadow into corporeal form, creating his own copy to walk outside the barrier. That way he can personally monitor the kingdom through this place."_

Prince Kagami stopped to show his concerned expression. _"Great Wizard Midorima… why is he so fervent in keeping your existence away from me?"_

There was a long silence on the stage, building the dramatic effect and keeping the audiences on the edge. _"That… because Father had promised the king to grant his wish…"_

Prince Kagami widened his eyes slightly, looking surprised before his brow furrowed. _"Even so, I believe their relationship isn't that great to begin with. I remembered how they argued all the time…"_

_"That… My Prince, I believe, is because even though he has a lot of quirks and his personality is rather difficult being such a tsundere and all,"_ (Takao and Seirin team snickered at this part, Kasamatsu snorted and Himuro chuckled) _"Father… actually, towards the king..."_ Doll Princess' voice trailed and she didn't finish the sentence, but from the way those words were uttered, it planted hell of a -clear as daylight- controversial idea inside the audiences' brains.

"Oh, my GOD! A sudden development of BL!" all the _fujoshi_ and _fudanshi_ (both open and closeted ones) screamed in undertone, or they were trying to, anyway, even though they still needed to cover their mouth to prevent them from squeaking hysterically.

Prince Kagami was very shocked, judging from his gawking. _"Seriously?!"_

"Nooooo! Not Shin-chan, damn it! Never! Waaaah!" Takao abruptly stood from his seat and declared emotionally (plus very loudly), immediately scaring the crap out of Kasamatsu who was completely horrified before trying to talk Takao (and pulled him) down, realizing that all eyes were suddenly focused on their spot.

"Holy shit! Takao! Calm the fuck down! It's just a freaking drama play!"

"But, but, BUT! It's Shin-chan's persona! They accused Shin-chan of being in love with that red haired psycho! I can't accept it! No way! Even though Shin-chan's supposed to be mine and mine alooone!"

Kasamatsu could only pale as— _yep_ , Takao still complained and wailed blatantly, not caring about TPO, which caused an instant uproar because all the other people present there then started to take their camera, and then snapped pictures (or shot videos) before gossiping that a new BL pair had just been born in the middle of the Seirin Spring Festival.

The Seirin basketball team couldn't help cracking up at the disaster and even though the actor on stage seemed bewildered, he forcefully continued with his dialogue to resume the play, probably in hope that there was some kind of damage control for the unexpected interruption.

_"SILENCE!"_

A thunderous shout from the stage, which didn't belong to Prince Kagami by the way, surprised all the audiences and stole their attention back to the play, where Great Wizard Midorima entered the scene, his eyes burning in jade fire as his face flushed very red, most very likely in total shame, but there seemed to be quite anger as well in his tone.

As the chaos died down and the spectators were slowly back to their respective seats, Great Wizard Midorima coughed before giving Takao's direction a scathing glare and Takao perked up slightly at the prominent attention. "Shin-chan…!" the owner of Hawk Eyes was teary at this point, feeling strangely happy that Midorima was giving him a very _hot_ stare.

Then, Great Wizard Midorima closed his eyes before he turned to face Prince Kagami. _"It's been awhile, Crown Prince Kagami,"_ he bowed politely at the crown prince.

Prince Kagami snapped out of his daze. _"Huh? Oh! It seemed I've smelled some kind of hallucinogen substance! Was it from the flowers here? I thought I heard the sound of disaster…!"_ and wow was he great at spontaneous improvisation to explain the pause of the drama.

_"Be careful, My Prince. Father's presence can confuse your consciousness."_ Doll Princess' voice was backing the prince up of his conjecture.

_"Great Wizard…!"_ Prince Kagami stepped back slightly, his hand instantly going to his waist to touch his sword, apparently getting ready if he had to fight the wizard to go through. _"So… you've been here the whole time, huh? Even though I could see your figure in the castle from time to time, that was only your shadow."_

Great Wizard Midorima lifted his head, looking surprised. _"How do you…?"_ but then he sighed. _"It seems she contacts you via telepathy, huh?"_ he smiled ruefully. _"What a troublesome child…"_

_"I had… always been able to connect with Kuroko since she acquired her soul,"_ Prince Kagami explained, _"-at least until ten years ago when I suddenly became unable to hear her voice anymore. I guess, since the exile and since you put up the barrier around this castle,"_ he frowned deeply and looked at the wizard with a betrayed look. _"Why, Great Wizard? You know how I feel towards her. You promised that you'd be on my si—!"_

_"I_ am _on Kuroko's side,"_ the Great Wizard cut the prince's speech tenaciously. _"Your father was very adamant to separate you from her. He was afraid that she would enchant you with some kind of dark power."_

_"But you know that is not true!"_ Prince Kagami immediately argued in desperate tone. _"There is no dark power inside Kuroko! For me, Kuroko is—!"_

_"I know that! I made her, Prince Kagami!"_ the Great Wizard cut again, seeming indignant. _"I made her… my daughter, my greatest creation…! But you also know what kind of person your father is. His words are absolute, and no matter what I said, he would not listen. If I did not bring her away from you, the king would have ordered her destroyed. I could not— still cannot let that happen…!"_

The Great Wizard Midorima sounded and appeared as distressed as Prince Kagami was, so Prince Kagami kind of sympathized with him. _"Even so… all we wish is to stay together, Great Wizard. Why didn't you take me with you so I could be with her…?"_ Prince Kagami set his very miserable expression causing the audience to tear up as well.

"Ah… poor Prince Kagami…!"

"He's already so in love with the Doll Princess…!"

"Hurry and get together… Prince Kagami, Doll Princess Kuroko…!"

Riko and Momoi were praying soundly now, wanting to see the main characters be together while sniffling slightly. The others stared at the girls with beads of sweats rolling down their faces, very awkward apparently.

_"And letting you neglect your duty as the Crown Prince of this kingdom? My Prince, I've been supporting the life of this kingdom since your great-great-great grandfather era. This kingdom is one of my children. There's no way I'll let this land perish with your father as the last king,"_ Great Wizard Midorima smiled morosely then.

_"I can still be a king with Kuroko by my side,"_ Prince Kagami gave him a determined gaze.

_"What about the heir? As resemble with human as Kuroko might be, in the end she is just a doll, My Prince. She cannot be human."_ The Great Wizard hardened his gaze as well.

_"Kingdom can always take Kise's child as an heir! She is in direct line of royalty, a child of my father too. Her blood and flesh are worth the king's title!"_ Prince Kagami still insisted, getting firmer with his belief.

Great Wizard was silent for a few moments, staring deeply into Prince Kagami's fiery ruby eyes. _"My Prince… why do you feel so strongly towards Doll Princess?"_ he asked then, probably wanting to know the reason why the crown prince was so drawn into the doll.

Kagami softened his expression as he answered the question, with all the conviction in his tone and voice. _"Something like that… even I cannot be sure. Only… Kuroko is always there, no matter when I'm in pain or in happiness… she is always there for me… my shadow…"_

Prince Kagami closed his eyes when Doll Princess's voice echoed in the great hall again. _"Even though you do not realize my presence here, I will always be by your side…"_

Then the light in the stage dimmed slightly as a shadow appeared from the side of the stage. It was Doll Princess Kuroko, sitting calmly on the throne-like chair. Her eyes were closed and she looked just like a beautiful doll with no life.

_"But I do see you… always, always…"_ Prince Kagami opened his eyes, turning to face the Doll Princess as very slowly, her eyes fluttered open to look straightly into Kagami's ruby one.

_"My Prince…"_ Doll Princess Kuroko's lips didn't move when she called her beloved prince, but her eyes alight, full of life, unlike the doll she was supposed to be previously.

_"Finally… I am able to see you again…"_ Prince Kagami moved closer to her before he knelt and seized her hand to kiss her palm. _"I miss you so much… my beloved Doll Princess Kuroko…"_ he smiled so tenderly at her before pulling her as he himself leaned into her to hug her in his warm embrace.

Doll Princess didn't move much. Her hands seemed to be very stiff as she lifted them to hold the prince back, showing that she wasn't made of flesh and blood like Prince Kagami was, but from wood and plastic. She was a doll that came to life because she was in love with a human.

"Oh, my…" Himuro was astounded and very impressed. "I never realized that Taiga has this kind of talent…"

"Ah, man...! I'm crying for real…!" Koganei actually cried in tears and tried to wipe them off his face unsuccessfully as Mitobe smiled and ruffled his hair, completely sharing the same sentiment.

"Thank god…! They're reunited…!" Furihata stared at the stage with watery smile. Kawahara and Fukuda nodded repeatedly in agreement; totally enthused as they watched the moving scene.

"Aww… Tetsu-kun, Kagamin…! So beautiful…!" Momoi covered her mouth while flushing, her heart absolutely stirred and thudding hard.

"Whoa… how come their act looks very natural… like it's really meant to be?" Hyuuga was impressed as he saw how heartfelt that scene was, as if both Kuroko and Kagami really felt that way towards each other.

"Well, maybe because they are really meant to be," Kiyoshi responded with a happy smile before he turned to face Hyuuga with his warm, dark caramel eyes, focused on him, trying to send the same message to the Seirin Captain.

Hyuuga was a fool if he didn't understand that. But he _wasn't_. He did get the message. Though, admitting it out loud was a different story. "Eyes on the stage, Kiyoshi," he pushed Kiyoshi's face back to the stage direction as Kiyoshi laughed slightly, seeing that Hyuuga's cheeks were quite red at this point.

_"I am glad that you are able to stay alive for more than ten years, My Princess…"_ Prince Kagami pulled back slightly, looking at Doll Princess' Kuroko's clear sky blue eyes affectionately.

_"Is it not because of you, My Prince?"_ Doll Princess looked upward at Prince Kagami's loving expression.

_"I see… so that's how it is…"_ Great Wizard Midorima stated slowly, earning both Prince and Princess' attention, as well as the audiences'.

"Oh no! The Great Wizard is still there!"

"Is he still trying to separate them?!"

They were all pretty anxious at this point because the confrontation hadn't ended yet.

_"Yes, that's how it is,"_ Prince Kagami faced him bravely, holding Doll Princess' body closer. _"Give it up, Great Wizard Midorima. She was created for me. We are meant to be with each other."_ Then he looked at Doll Princess again, reaching to hold her hand this time. _"We will be together until my time ends. For you and I are destined to be one, My Doll Princess, Kuroko."_

_"Yes, My Prince…"_ Doll Princess cracked the smallest smile and the audiences gasped in awe at how incredible that small change was to add to the loving feel of the air around them.

Great Wizard Midorima looked like he was still unable to accept it, but then he gazed at Doll Princess' expression and sighed in resignation. He lifted his head before setting a small smile of acceptance. _"If you are happy like this—"_

_"A love that defies norm and universe… What a bizarre thinking."_

King Akashi's voice was suddenly heard on stage and spot light immediately focused on the other side of the stage where King Akashi showed up with his army.

_"Father!?"_ Prince Kagami looked very surprised, as well as Great Wizard Midorima.

_"My King…! Why…?"_ Everyone on stage seemed perplexed, except the Doll Princess who only set her obstinate stare at the king.

_"At last… I found this place. Ten years I tried to locate this castle with no luck. Just like my Crown Prince, I was so obsessed in finding the doll again. Luckily I kept an eye on you, Prince Kagami. Well, unlike your purpose to reunite with her, I decide to eliminate her for once and all, so my crown prince will finally let her go."_ King Akashi drew out his sword. _"My people; destroy that doll."_

_"Father!"_ Prince Kagami instantly panicked. He tried to cover Kuroko by drawing his sword as well, fending off the guards that came to attack her. _"My King, please stop! Take back your order! Father!"_

_"I can't do that. That doll has enchanted you, My Prince. I was too late to exile her since she already planted a seed of darkness inside you that cause you to fall head over heels in love with her. She must be destroyed so the chains that bind your soul can be broken,"_ King Akashi was cold and deadly when he spoke, like a warrior with sole purpose to defeat his enemy.

"Oh no! The king is…!"

"Shit… he looks so dangerous and scary like that!"

"It's like… he's freaking serious with his words! Is he really trying to kill the Doll Princess?!"

"As expected of Sei-chan… he fits the role so well, down to his ruthlessness."

_"Father! Please stop! Stop it! King Akashi!"_ Prince Kagami seemed aggravated and desperate. Of course, he couldn't really cut his opponents because they were also his people, the guards that protected the kingdom and its people.

_"Do it."_ King Akashi wasn't moved in the slightest as he made an execution gesture with his hand.

_"FATHER!"_

Prince Kagami hopeless scream was answered by Guard Murasakibara who suddenly came out of behind Prince Kagami and Doll Princess, his sword was thrust forward, and it pierced through Doll Princess' back.

"KYAAAAAAAA!" the female audience screamed in horror.

"No way…!" the male ones looked absolutely horrified.

"Hey, hey…! Isn't this supposed to be romantic comedy…?"

"How come it became a tragedy now?!"

_"Ah…!"_ Prince Kagami widened his eyes in mortification as the sword was pulled out of Doll Princess. She swayed for a moment before she fell, collapsing on the ground. _"Kurokoooooooooo!"_

_"Kuroko!"_ Great Wizard Midorima gasped in shock before he chanted and swung his staff to put the guards down, rendering them unconscious, including guard Murasakibara. _"Kuroko!"_ then he ran to aid Kuroko and Kagami who was knelt and traumatized beside her, holding her with trembling hands and arms.

_"No…! No…! Don't leave me…! Kuroko…!"_ Prince Kagami hugged her tightly, refusing to let go, mourning and crying and he looked so very heartbroken and crestfallen that the audiences cried with him as well.

"Don't die! Doll Princess!"

"You can't die, Doll Princess Kuroko!"

"You can't leave Prince Kagami alone!"

"Shit…! That Akashi…! This is not supposed to happen this way…! It's supposed to be happy ending, damn it!" the entire Seirin team glared murderously at King Akashi on stage, except Furihata who was very-very anxious at this turn of event.

_Isn't this supposed to be just a play?! Why is everyone getting so worked up!?_

_"No use, My Prince. She wasn't supposed to be alive in the first place. Doll Princess… I merely set her back to her initial purpose of being created, as a lifeless doll…"_ King Akashi had a decency not to laugh at this grave and tragic situation even though he got what he wanted.

_"Why…? How could you, My King…?! You promised me not to hurt her! You promised!"_ Great Wizard stood and glared daggers at King Akashi.

_"My promise is… I won't eliminate her as long as she stays away from my son. But even with your magic trying to hide her, my crown prince still found her anyway. It makes me doubt your seriousness in trying to protect her, my wizard,"_ King Akashi glanced at Great Wizard Midorima dismally.

_"My King… don't you understand? Your son really loves her,"_ Great Wizard Midorima wept, looking hurt and sad, helpless. _"Just the way you love his mother, he loves Kuroko just as much…!"_

King Akashi glared heatedly at Great Wizard Midorima now. _"Do not compare her to that doll…!"_ he hissed, looking angry.

_"Even though she looks just like her…"_ Great Wizard Midorima clenched her teeth.

_"Be quiet, Great Wizard."_

_"No matter how much you love the queen, she will not come back alive!"_

_"SILENCE!"_ King Akashi shouted now. _"Don't you dare say another word, Great Wizard Midorima! You know nothing of my feelings for her…! Nothing at all!"_

There was a crashing sound as a lot of spotlights moved around the darkened great hall before it slowly gathered on the stage, illuminating Doll Princess and Prince Kagami that was still holding her tightly. Prince Kagami seemed surprised when the body in his hold twitched and slowly, Doll Princess Kuroko's eyes fluttered open.

_"Oh… K-Kuroko…?"_

"Eh?!"

"No way! Doll Princess is still alive?!"

_"What?!"_ King Akashi and Great Wizard Midorima also looked very surprised as slowly, very stiffly, Doll Princess Kuroko moved her body, gradually waking up.

_"My King…"_ then Doll Princess turned her heard to face King Akashi. _"My King… I know exactly how you feel towards the late queen, my predecessor. I know you might see her in me at some point, but you are angry with me because I am not the same as your beloved queen. I know the dark magic excuse was just a way to make me disappear because you could not bear to see the queen's face while unable to treat me the same as her."_ Doll Princess spoke and the king glared at her resentfully.

_"What are you implying about?"_

Doll Princess showed him a poignant smile even though her expression didn't change much. _"King Akashi… I am not your beloved 'wife'. I am a doll, made with craft and magic, an inanimate object. I came to life because of the pure love given to me by the crown prince. Prince Kagami's love gave me soul. I move around and speak for his desire. His affection gave birth to my personality. His care and joy gave me happiness. I live for his love and his love alone, My King. The soul in my core is Prince Kagami's love. As long as he loves me, I will continue existing in this world, no matter what you do. You cannot eliminate me unless you kill your crown prince."_

King Akashi widened his eyes at that and Prince Kagami stood up as well slowly, looking awed at the strong and determined expression in Doll Princess' face. _"Kuroko…"_

Doll Princess turned around to face Prince Kagami and he reached out her hands to cup Kagami's cheeks. _"My Prince… a doll's love lasts for eternity…"_ She alleviated her gaze, pulling Prince Kagami's face closer as she stood on her toes, leaning upward to give a soft kiss on the prince's lips.

Prince Kagami only looked surprised for a moment before he softened his expression as well, pulling back slightly only to soothingly whisper _"Your eternity… is the rest of my life…"_ and then he reconnected their lips tenderly, holding Doll Princess' waist gently with one hand while his other one nested on Doll Princess head, fingers tangling between strands of the fake long blue hair.

The kiss lasted for some time, causing the audiences to blush in various degrees and reasons, some in excitement, some in embarrassment, some in mortification, some in happiness and some in wonder. Both the prince and princess looked very good in that wonderfully romantic atmosphere and most of the female spectators sighed (and squealed) dreamily at the view.

"T-they are really kissing…!" Momoi fainted, blushing furiously as the Seirin team covered their hot face in total awkwardness.

_How embarrassing…! Those two idiots…!_

"Whoa! Kagami and Kuroko really nail it!" Takao was positively ecstatic while Himuro only smiled, shaking his head.

"About damn time."

Mibuchi's face faulted. "Sei-chan… he looks really shocked…"

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! I'm sorry for peeping!" Sakurai covered his eyes while chanting his apology, feeling like a voyeur.

Though, the climax of the play had to end at some point, especially when Princess Kise and Prince Aomine also entered the scene. _"Aaaaaaaah! Aniue!"_ that was Princess Kise, screeching in shock and chagrin seeing the kissing scene.

_"Damn you…!"_ and now, for some reasons Prince Aomine looked pissed off as he glared heatedly at Prince Kagami.

Both Prince Kagami and Doll Princess pulled back, their face flushing slightly as they looked at each other eyes briefly before they turned to face the still shocked King Akashi and Great Wizard Midorima, the wailing Princess Kise and the fuming Prince Aomine. Guard Murasakibara and the others still appeared unconscious on the ground.

Prince Kagami seemed to have a decency to look embarrassed though, but he didn't let go of Doll Princess' body from his hold as he spoke. _"Prince Aomine, Kise! I am so glad that you are alright!"_ and he looked relieved as he saw them.

Princess Kise bit the hem of her sleeve as she stared at Prince Kagami and Doll Princess very close proximity with envy in her eyes. _"Not fair, Aniue! You never told me that you and Doll Princess have become so close!"_ she protested hard.

_"I never realized you were such a pervert, Prince Kagami,"_ Prince Aomine growled.

Prince Kagami chuckled. _"Well, say whatever you want. I'm just very happy to get her back… oh, and to see you guys safe and sound,"_ he seemed in a very good mood, looking very content and cheery such that both Prince Aomine and Princess Kise blinked in a slight surprise.

_"Father… this is…?"_ Princess Kise then turned to face Akashi who seemed to snap out from his shock in reaction to his daughter inquiring tone.

King Akashi looked troubled for a moment before he narrowed his eyes at Doll Princess. _"You are serious about this…"_ It wasn't a question, more like a statement of finally catching up with a fact, but it seemed that Doll Princess wanted to confirm it anyway.

_"I am… my King. Prince Kagami is my all."_ Doll Princess said surely. _"But, I also care about you, King Akashi. Princess Kise… and Prince Aomine too, Great Wizard Midorima... Father, even Guard Murasakibara, because all of you are… my family,"_ then she smiled so serenely that everyone that saw it was rendered speechless for a few moments.

Even Prince Kagami looked astounded. Somehow, all the audiences who knew the history between Doll Princess Kuroko (Tetsuya), King Akashi (Seijuurou), Prince Aomine (Daiki), Princess Kise (Ryouta), Great Wizard Midorima (Shintarou) and Guard Murasakibara (Atsushi) as the ex-Teikou Middle greatest basketball team felt that her words were the real deal and she looked as if she was asking for their acknowledgment as her family to accept Prince Kagami (Taiga) as the one she chose to be her love of her life.

King Akashi looked upward at the ceiling before he softened his expression and sighed in resignation. _"Such conviction… since the very first time I had an expectation of you… you never failed to surprise me… Doll Princess Kuroko."_

_"Yes, My King."_ Doll Princess kept smiling, showing how content and happy she was for being able to stay together at Prince Kagami's side. The prince tightened his hold on her waist in reaction.

_"You made your choice, huh…"_ Prince Aomine stared meaningfully at the Doll princess and at Prince Kagami.

_"Aniue… Doll Princess… are you really going to be okay together…?"_ Princess Kise still looked like she was about to cry.

_"We will be happy together,"_ Doll Princess seemed very convinced of that.

_"Will you… take care of her?"_ Great Wizard Midorima asked the prince.

_"I'm going to protect her for the rest of my life."_ Prince Kagami answered in a small smile, his voice and tone full of determination.

King Akashi smiled slightly as well before he tapped the ground once with the edge of his sword. _"Very well,"_ he said, finally sounding accepting. _"From now on, hereby I, King Akashi of this Kingdom, give permission to Doll Princess to come back to the main castle. Prince Kagami will remain as the Crown Prince while I will give the Crown Princess title to Princess Kise as the qualified next queen."_

_"Eh?!"_ Princess Kise looked surprised. _"B-but Father! How can I be the next queen if Aniue will be the next king?!"_

_"He won't be the next king. There's no point in making Prince Kagami a king if he won't take any human female as his wife. The people won't accept Doll Princess as his queen. That's why; he will only remain as a Crown Prince and lead under you, My dear Princess, helping you with the responsibility as a ruler of the land together with your future husband,"_ King Akashi explained, looking confident.

_"No way…! I'm suddenly nominated to be the next queen! What should I do, Prince Aomine?"_ the blond princess looked very nervous, holding her cheeks.

_"Just do it, I guess. I'll help you out as well. Don't worry,"_ Prince Aomine tapped Princess Kise's back gently, a soothing smile on his face.

_"Prince Aomine…!"_ Princess Kise looked at Prince Aomine's face with wet grateful eyes.

_"Well then, why don't you two get married? If Kise will lead this Kingdom as the queen and Prince Aomine will become a king to his own kingdom, joining two kingdoms will bring our land more prosperity as well, right? Our people will be delighted to have both kingdoms merged together along with their marriage,"_ Prince Kagami then threw an idea and King Akashi seemed to find it amusing.

_"That will be interesting, indeed."_

_"W-wait a second! Aniue! Father! That's—!"_ Princess Kise blushed feverishly, looking greatly embarrassed.

_"Huh, not a bad idea actually. Shall we get married, My Princess?"_ Prince Aomine then winked at Princess Kise and the blond princess automatically combusted at that.

_"Aomine-chi!"_

_"Shall I prepare the ball to announce the engagement then?"_ Great Wizard Midorima pushed up his glasses, looking already into it.

_"Not Great Wizard Midorima too!"_ Princess Kise was still protesting, though the amused laughter that came from the other actors on stage brought all the audiences to smile as well.

_"Congratulation, Princess Kise, Prince Aomine,"_ of course Doll Princess had to throw the last line.

_"Doll Princess Kuroko...!"_ Princess Kise was in tears at this point for still being bullied even as a princess on stage.

_"And so… finally the story reached its end. Crown Prince Kagami lived in the castle with his beloved Doll Princess in gratification. Princess Kise who initially already had a crush on Prince Aomine couldn't help feeling very pleased with the engagement even though she was very shy at first, while Prince Aomine started to act like a real gentle man who devotes all his love and attention solely to his fiancé. King Akashi spent his time ruling the kingdom with his grace and the kingdom and its people live happily ever after."_

Along with the slowly closed curtain to end the outrageous play, the narrator spoke with satisfied tone and voice and the audiences immediately rose from their seats and clapped their hands enthusiastically while cheering "ENCORE! ENCORE!" to the actors that played such wacky and yet appealing play.

"Aaaah! They are so amazing! The play is awesome!"

"It's a bit outlandish, but damn it! It's very fascinating!"

"I want my school to have this kind of drama play as well!"

All the spectators were very excited as the spoke about the play. The Seirin team and Miracle's sidekicks were also damned thrilled as they laughed and pointed some attention-grabbing scenes. All in all, despite the disastrous progress, the play ended in a HUGE success for leaving such strong impression to the audiences…

**#**

At the backstage, all the girls and personnel of Class 2B cheered in over joy, hugging and laughing together in the sense of complete fulfillment of their success despite their utter failure to stop the Generation of Miracle from wrecking the plot...

**End of Chapter 12**

**Tbc…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "WE DID IT!" is what I want all of them to yell out, actually *lol* Well, that will be in next chapter! *grins* Phew, so here's the end of the play *snickers* For a moment there I was worried what would happen when Akashi crashed into the scene again (really, what an troublesome guy). Had to add the almost tragic end, hope you guys are surprised with the twist *lol*. So, feed back? *puppy eyes*


	13. The Changing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And the feelings start to change for our main characters... also for the GoM. XD

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, but it was probably faster than the previous update, huh? Well, it's because you readers are awesome! I love it when I read your reviews! XD And seeing more people faves and alerts the fic! I'm so happy! Now, please enjoy this new chapter!  
>  **Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke and its characters © Tadatoshi Fujimaki. Luna only plays with the characters and no profit is made from this fan fiction.**  
>  **Warning:** _shounen ai, slight oOC-ness, language, possible spelling mistakes and grammar errors, craziness of high school boys, bizarreness and insanity, AND beware of suggestive fan-service! *loool*_

  
**Chapter 13:** _**The Changing** _   


* * *

"WE DID IT!" all the backstage Class 2B personnel jumped in joy and delight after the players were back from the stage for the second time since they were urged by the MC to go out onstage once again in order to give all the audiences their greeting for a job well done despite how catastrophic the progress of the play might have been.

"All of you are perfectly magnificent! I love you guys!" Sasaki was crying in joyful tears as the players gathered around her in the preparation room, congratulating each other (minus the five GoM members that looked remotely worn out rather than thrilled).

"It is a group effort," Kuroko smiled, feeling the satisfaction of finishing his part as flawlessly as he was capable of.

"Yeah, even if it was a very tough work, what with constant interruption from certain group of people…" Kagami grinned jubilantly, also looking very pleased because Kuroko and Kagami had somehow pulled their acts together very well despite the unexpected disruption from Akashi (mainly) and the GoM earlier.

Still, Kuroko had to thank him one way or another, because Akashi had been willing to help Class 2B with their play even though his motive was clearly to keep Kuroko and Kagami away from each other. Luckily, Kuroko was able to turn it into his opportunity to tell Akashi and the other GoM members that it was his desire to pursue this _thing_ between Kagami and himself. Even through Doll Princess' dialogues, he was sure that they _understood_ Kuroko's sincerity.

Kuroko wasn't exactly certain at first if this was the right move, and maybe he was still questioning whether his feeling was real or this was just another phase of puberty. But honestly, Kuroko had to admit that he couldn't deny his attraction to Kagami anymore. When he and Kagami kissed onstage before, he had felt another surge of spark that clearly told him how he felt towards the taller red head, and judging from how earnest Kagami had kissed him back right after, he was sure that Kagami felt the same.

Kuroko could still feel the tingling sensation of Kagami's lips on his, the trace of heat that ignited fire of passion deep inside him, causing his heart to beat quicker and harder. Only Kagami could make Kuroko experience such feeling. Now, it was only the matter of whether both Kuroko and Kagami could acknowledge it to themselves and to one another, like the way Prince Kagami and Doll Princess professed their undying love towards each other, minus the dramatic part, of course.

"Akashi-san, Midorima-san, Kise-san, Aomine-san and Murasakibara-san, thank you very much for lending us your exceptional skill to succeed the play!"

Kuroko saw Sasaki bow deeply in front of the GoM group, the others following soon after with gratitude in their smile and gesture.

"You are welcome," Akashi nodded at them coolly and regally, as if he still played his part as a king. Still, that was his default attitude most of the time, so it was _natural_ for him to look majestic.

"Ah, I'm glad that I could help at all!" Kise smiled cheerily, looking rather flustered despite the sparkle around his feature that screamed MODEL all the time.

"Well, it's Akashi's order…" Aomine responded rather awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck lazily while Midorima pushed his spectacles up his nose bridge, apparently trying to hide his face and discomfiture.

"It's nothing special," the green haired teen still flushed a little bit, though, judging from the pink cheeks. What a _tsundere_.

Murasakibara tilted his head aside slightly. "Payment, Sakura rice-cake from Class 3C…" he looked at the door longingly, seeming to want to hurry and go to get the compensation that Akashi had promised him earlier.

"You can get as many foods and drinks as you like in class 3C, all of you; on the house!" Ayasaki and Tamaki beamed at them while pushing them to crowd in one area, "-after we take memorial pictures, of course!"

"Kagami-kun! Kuroko-kun! Come here!" Sasaki called Kuroko and Kagami to move closer. Kuroko glanced at Kagami rather shyly as Kagami peered down at him bashfully. They were locking gaze in silence for a moment before Kuroko started to chuckle and Kagami bark a laugh.

"Yosh! Let's be number one class in this festival too!" Kagami reached out his hand to grab Kuroko's and pulled him to the others' direction.

"Yes!" Kuroko replied surely.

Kuroko was positive of one thing, though, that he was very glad for getting chosen to play as the lead character in Doll Princess play, because right now, he felt considerably closer with everyone in his class, not just Kagami, but also the class president Sasaki, the class vice-president Ayasaki, Tamaki-san, the girls in charge of costumes and background setting, the other guys that played the drama alongside him, (even) _the GoM_ and Kagami, and especially with Kagami, his wonderful light.

_I kind of wish this would last forever…—_ Kuroko couldn't help thinking as he, Kagami and all Class 2B plus the GoM (still in their respective drama-costumes) were photographed together in various poses and expressions. Then some days later, their pictures were proudly hung at the back of photography club room and 2B classroom, posted on the school board and website, while the copies were given to each class member and some were sent to the GoM members that participated in the play.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Now it was the time for tidying up. But, of course the players had to remove their costumes and makeup first before that.

Kagami hurriedly got rid of his costume as soon as he entered the changing room, obviously because it was unbearably hot. "I will never agree to put on something as suffocating as this costume _ever_ again," he grumbled darkly, pretty much annoyed because there were a lot of layers underneath the outer coat. How troublesome.

_So humid…!_ —Kagami fanned himself with his hand while his other hand reached out for his regular spring uniform on the table. However, instead of his clothes, his fingers somehow touched something-… _no;_ someone else's hand.

Kagami looked down and saw Kuroko, reaching for the same uniform. "Um…" Kuroko looked upward at him with his large baby blue eyes, still in his costume, and Kagami's heart beat harder for a second.

"Ah, s-sorry," he immediately pulled his hand back. "I thought that was mine… haha. Mine is over here, huh?" Kagami felt extra self-conscious after that while he was looking for the right clothing.

_Aaah, sheesh! What the hell am I doing?! Why am I so flustered over such thing?!_ —Kagami couldn't help berating himself in the process of putting on his white button up shirt after he found it, because he knew something was wrong with him. He and Kuroko already kissed (even though it was just for a play), what was he so embarrassed about now? His hand only touched Kuroko's skin a little…

" _My Prince…"_

Kagami couldn't help remembering Doll Princess Kuroko looking at him with full of affection and his soft kissable pink lips getting closer to his own and…— _AAAAAAARGH!_ —Kagami gave his head a mental kick for actually remembering something so… so unbelievably impure about Kuroko.

_Yeah, he's just Kuroko! He's a guy! My teammate, partner as well as important shadow! Get a hold of yourself, ME!_

"Kagami-kun."

Kagami snapped out from his mental meltdown with a loud yelp as he heard Kuroko's voice for real, but not like the soft heartfelt voice in his imagination, Kuroko's voice was dull and toneless as usual. "W-what?" Kagami hid himself slightly behind his black _gakuran_ even though it was kind of too late to conceal his upper body since he already let everyone (the other boys that changed with them) saw it before he put on his white shirt.

"Um… this is rather discomforting, but could you help me with the zipper of this dress? It is hard to reach with my own hands," Kuroko said, turning his back on Kagami and sliding his fake hair up front of his shoulder so as to give Kagami easier access to the said zipper on his back.

"Eh?" Kagami was at a loss for a moment, forgetting that he was still buttoning up his own white shirt as he put down his _gakuran_ back to the table. Then he noticed. The dark blue ribbons which covered Kuroko's dress on the chest and the waist area were already detached, leaving only the plain white-light blue dress to remove.

"The zipper, Kagami-kun," Kuroko repeated.

"Oh, okay…" Kagami absentmindedly reached out for the zipper and then pulled it down slowly, revealing more fair skin of Kuroko's back, and as his eyes unexpectedly met the dark corset, Kagami immediately gasped, his hand movement faltering before stopping completely.

"Kagami-kun?" Kuroko turned his head around slightly, tilting his face up with question in his eyes.

Kagami's head was instantly filled with vision of Prince Kagami slowly undressing Doll Princess Kuroko before their first night toget— _NOOOOOOOOOOO!_ —and he banged his head in the nearest wall _literally_ , surprising the other students who immediately turned to stare at him with odd look. _I-I'm turning weiiiird…!_ —now Kagami cried inwardly from the shame, and the pain on his throbbing forehead.

"Kagami-kun, are you alright?" Kuroko turned around to look upward at him, part of the dress already sliding down his shoulder, revealing his bare upper arm and the black corset that covered his chest and Kagami couldn't help the sudden heat rushing up to his face and spreading like a blazing wildfire on his entire body at the erotic disheveled appearance Kuroko showed. Worse, Kuroko's long fake hair were still intact, strands of blue framing his beautiful face and falling down to his shoulder, creating an image of half-dressed maiden ready to get ravished.

_Holy fuuuuuuck!_ —Kagami nearly had a nosebleed at the sight and jolted right away in shock when he realized that it wasn't just him that was attracted to Kuroko's messy and yet totally sexy appearance because all the boys were watching him with disconcerted expression as well.

_Crap!_

"Kuroko, come here!" Kagami had to instantaneously pull the bluenet away from the other guys, pushed Kuroko inside the changing booth and closed the curtain so as to hide him (and Kagami) from the others' sight.

**#**

Kuroko felt his body being pulled and pushed so suddenly, but Kagami's hand grip on his arm prevented the hard collision and only left a gentle press on his back as the taller teen backed him up against the wall of the changing booth. Kuroko stared at him, slightly confused as the read head pulled the curtain close.

"Ka-Kagami-kun…?" Kuroko really didn't know what happened. Kagami looked strange, his breath quick, short and shallow. Moreover, he seemed mortified for some reason. His eyes were wide and his irises seemed darker, pupils blown wide. Frankly, he looked rather scary, especially when his hand was still holding Kuroko's arm rather tightly.

No, it wasn't painful, but Kuroko felt the strange urgency. Something was going on inside Kagami's mind at that moment. Although Kuroko wasn't sure what it was, he could hear and feel the fast, hard thrumming of heartbeat from Kagami's chest in their very close proximity.

"Uh, umm… Kagami-kun, it is kind of… narrow in here…" Kuroko commented, for some reason unable to meet Kagami's eyes anymore because his own heartbeat started to pick up pace in Kagami's resonance and the air around them was getting too warm for his comfort.

_W-what… what is this?_ —Kuroko couldn't help wondering on the inside, rather bewildered, even though he didn't really show it much in his face.

"S-sorry, but I just…" Kagami gulped slightly, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, and his voice… his voice was lowered, and husky and—

_Oh my God! He sounded sexy as hell!_ —Kuroko immediately realized that Kagami was kind of turned on. He could almost smell it now… the _arousal_.

"Ka-Kagami-kun…!" Kuroko tried to put a distance between Kagami and himself by putting his palms on Kagami's chest which unluckily (or very fortuitously) was still bare since his white shirt was still partially unbuttoned.

Upon the initial contact of Kuroko's slightly cool skin to his heated one, Kagami groaned lightly. "Nnh…!"

"Ah," Kuroko was of course surprised and pulled them back without delay as Kagami's both hands slammed into the wall behind Kuroko, just above his head. "Um… I-… that was…!" Now Kuroko didn't know what to do or say, his heart beating a mile per minute, and he could barely feel anything but the rush of blood to his own face and ears, Kagami's warm breaths on his hair and the increase of temperature in his own upon sensing Kagami's higher body heat. He didn't dare to look at Kagami's eyes at all, afraid of what he would see.

_What- what should I do…?_

"S-sorry, I just don't… I don't want them to see you like this…!"

…

…

"Eh?" Kuroko very slowly lifted his face upward, gradually looking at Kagami's red, blushing face, but the taller teen's eyes were closed now.

"You-… you really look like a girl, you know. They will get the wrong idea. They looked very weird and dangerous when they saw your appearance like this just now, so… hurry take off that wig and dress, and put on the damned school uniform properly!" Kagami raised his voice slightly, clenching his fists on the wall and keeping his eyes clenched shut while still flushing fervently.

Kuroko was dumbfounded for a second before— _He's just embarrassed?_ —He turned scarlet instantly at his overly imaginative thinking and overreaction to Kagami's loss of composure. He was so ashamed such that he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him up right there and then.

_Ah, jeez! What kind of dirty idea am I thinking?_ —Now Kuroko wanted to die for misjudging the situation completely. He thought Kagami would attack him, seriously! What was wrong with him!?

**#**

Kagami's heart was still beating erratically as if it had gone crazy. What kind of perverted things had he imagined at that moment after seeing Kuroko with such erotic look? He couldn't entertain the idea anymore or he would seriously molest Kuroko against his (Kagami's) own will.

"Kuroko, hurry up! Are you done yet?" Kagami knew he sounded (and was pretty much) desperate. He had to get away now, damn it! Before he lost control completely!

"Ah, b-but… the corset… I cannot get my hands on the lace…" Kuroko's sweet, shy voice worked miraculously in stimulating Kagami's unexplainable desire to touch his shadow even more.

_Daaaamn!_

"Ugh…! The-the lace? Where?" Kagami still dutifully closed his eyes, but he had to do something to help quicken the end of this _surreal_ situation before he exploded for real. He pulled back slightly and lowered his hands to start loosely roam on Kuroko's back.

"Nnh…!"

Kagami faltered slightly as he heard the soft moan and he could feel Kuroko's tiny body flinch and tremble under his touches. The shorter boy even leaned forward to flush it against Kagami's chest. Kagami nearly squeaked, but his hands kept moving around to spot the said lace. _Dear Lord…!—_ Kagami could feel Kuroko's (now) warm body in his embrace, so fucking close and tempting, but he couldn't do a damn thing about it! _This is pure torture!_

Kagami bit back a whimper as soon as his hand found the lace. With shaky fingers, he pulled open the knot of the string and tugged it slowly to loosen the material that bound Kuroko's body to fit in the dress which was still pooling at Kuroko's waist, by the way. Kagami could feel the material of the skirt part still remotely there after all. Well, it was slowly lowered to the ground… and it felt so erotic!

"Ka-Kagami-kun…" Kuroko's soft, _throaty_ whisper caused Kagami's heart to pound painfully harder and sent his blood to one direction he didn't want most.

_Shit! Shit! Shit! Why is he sounding like that?!_ —the imaginary alarm of danger had been blaring inside Kagami's head for awhile now; actually, since he realized how much alluring Kuroko was when he was half-dress, moreover almost fully undressed now. If this continued, Kagami didn't know what he would do to Kuroko. He had to get away! He already dropped the corset down and there was nothing that kept his and Kuroko's skin apart. _Dangerous level 4!—_ He perfectly realized it, but why were his hands still attached on Kuroko's bare waist?!

"W-what?" Kagami's voice was already cracking damn it!

_Aaaaa! Help meeee!_

"M-my uniform… my uniform is still on- _nn_ , on the outside," Kuroko stated, rather difficultly with the way his body pressed into Kagami's excited one.

"What?!" Kagami opened his eyes in surprise. "Idiot! Hurry and tell me that first!" He couldn't help blushing hard as his eyes caught a _view_ of a naked Kuroko (save his boxer) in Kagami's hold.

_GYAAAAAAH!_ —Kagami immediately raised the both of his hands up and frantically backed off until he was stumbled out of the changing booth and fell on his butt squarely on the floor.

At that particularly embarrassing scene, Kagami was immediately met with Kise's distressed shriek, Aomine's deep scowl, Midorima horrified face, Murasakibara's uninterested expression and last but not least, Akashi's icy murderous glare.

_Uh-oh!_ —Kagami gulped warily seeing the threat looming around him, and yet he was still blushing like crazy too. Also, he couldn't think of any excuse (of his and Kuroko's predicament at that moment), so he shouted "Kuroko's uniform! Hurry!" at them while extending his hand as if it was the matter of life and death. Well, in a way, it _was_ (for Kagami at least).

Aomine, still growling, lumped the material together and threw it at Kagami like a missile and Kagami delivered the uniform inside the changing booth from above since he didn't want to (absolutely _couldn't_ ) see Kuroko's body anymore than he already had.

"T-thank you…" from inside the booth, Kuroko vaguely showed his gratitude and Kagami just wanted all of this to be over so he could die in peace.

**#**

Outside the changing room, everyone already finished packing up their stuffs so the room could be used by the next class to prepare their own play, Kagami and Kuroko (along with the GoM) who were the last to get out from the changing room (for some reason the GoM's mood seemed worse while Kagami and Kuroko looked very tongue-tied) were relieved from the cleaning duty. Well, the GoM had nothing to do whatsoever since they weren't actually the members of the class.

"You've worked hard in the play, so leave this to us. Go play in the festival," Sasaki said with a grin, absolutely in total good mood.

"Ah, why don't you go to our planetarium class? See how the progress there?" Ayasaki suggested, turning absolutely absentminded as she ogled Kuroko and Kagami who were apparently very self-conscious because they were still expected to spend some more alone time _together_ after the play.

Yep. Girls could dream, alright, especially if they were _fujoshi_.

"I want to eat first…" Kagami muttered while his stomach rumbled vociferously, as if supporting its own idea of spending free time.

"Kagami-kun… did you not just eat before the play?" Kuroko stared at him with a wry gaze.

"Can't help it! All those acting and nerve-wracking scenes make me hungry!" Kagami had a decency to look rather embarrassed at this. He still complained noisily, though.

"Understood, I will accompany you," Kuroko let out a weak sigh, but he gave Kagami a small cute smile afterwards, causing Kagami's cheeks to redden slightly.

"I-I'll buy you a drink…" Kagami looked another way, looking particularly nervous as he offered his hand without pointedly looking at Kuroko who only blinked once in a slight surprise before he chuckled.

"Just one drink?" Somehow, Kuroko's voice sounded witty even though the tone was as dry as leaf in autumn.

Kagami visibly flushed harder, his split eyebrows twitching a little. "F-Fine! As much as you want then!"

"Okay," Kuroko didn't keep Kagami waiting for too long. Without hesitation, he took the offered hand before they walked away from the great hall, hand in hand, in an awfully great, lovely, pinkish atmosphere.

"Aww~!" the girls sighed dreamily and blissfully seeing such pretty scene while the boys, who witnessed what occurred in the changing room earlier, couldn't help thinking uncomfortably that something really _did happen_ between Kagami and Kuroko inside the booth.

**#**

"Uwaaah, they are so ridiculously lovey-dovey…!" Kise covered his face with both hands, still somewhat agitated and jealous, because his beloved Kuroko-chi had finally found the love of his life and now was enjoying every second of it without _sharing_. "And something like that happened in changing booth! Aaaa! Kuroko-chiiii!" then he sobbed once again in total aggravation.

"Shut up, Kise! You are embarrassing too! Stop whining!" Aomine grabbed Kise's neck with his arm as his free hand messed with the blond locks curtly in palpable frustration, disarraying Kise's hair completely.

"Waaah! Aomine-chi, you meanieeee!" Kise wailed after that, but he held onto Aomine's arms tightly, somehow, wanting to have some kind of leverage to finally let Kuroko go, out and free of their safe nest. Besides, Kise could vaguely feel that Aomine firmly holding him was probably the tan ace's own way to hold onto his willpower, or maybe he just needed someone to be there with him lest he broke down later.

Midorima, who was surprisingly the first one that could understand and was willing to let go (after much affronted grumbling about how inappropriate their conduct was in the changing room earlier), sighed in resignation seeing their friends infantile manners, before he turned to face Akashi who had been silent for awhile now. "Akashi," he called him slowly, his emerald eyes boring into the figure of their ex-captain, as if he were asking if the red head was okay.

Akashi only closed his mismatched colored eyes in response after constantly looking at the disappearing forms of Kuroko and Kagami in the distance. A few seconds later he opened them once again and returned Midorima's concerned gaze with a light smile.

"Tetsuya is happy. That's the most important thing," he said tranquilly before his eyes turned serious and ice-cold once again. "Let's just watch them from afar. If that _Tiger_ makes Tetsuya cry… _we_ will bury him together."

Of course the decision was final.

Midorima, plus Aomine and Kise (who accidentally heard it), paled slightly while screaming their heads off silently. _Don't include us in your murder plan, damn it!_ —Sometimes, they didn't know why they still hung out together with their clearly unstable ex-captain.

"Let's get that reward, Aka-chin." Apparently, only Murasakibara didn't care about all the drama unfolding before him and decided to pursue the only thing he cared about beside Himuro and basketball, his precious snacks.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Congrats on the successful play!" Riko, along with all Seirin team, greeted both Kagami and Kuroko when they emerged from the class 3C entrance, with wide grins on their faces. Some looked ecstatic, some just plainly pleased and cheerful.

"Senpai… everyone…" Kuroko raised his eyebrows slightly in visible astonishment, seeing such immense greeting.

"Huh? You guys didn't see the next drama?" Kagami wondered. Even the first years were there after all.

"Not necessary! We know we will vote for your class, Senpai! That drama was so interesting and awesome!" the five freshmen, newest members of Seirin basketball team that enrolled this spring, talked rather excitedly as they looked at Kagami as if he was some kind of a hero.

Kagami couldn't help his cheeks heating slightly. "Ah, thanks for the vote, but please, quit with the reminder of the play already!" He could see Kuroko hiding his smile while the seniors were snickering at him.

"But seriously, Kagami-senpai was so manly, right? He actually kissed Kuroko-senpai and was perfectly cool with it!" one of the boys said, sounding truly amazed.

_As if! They just don't know how mortified this ordeal was for me!_ —Kagami yelled inwardly while another wave of blush threatened to taint his face.

"Kuroko-senpai was very beautiful too in that getup! He was incredible as a Doll princess! He looked just like a doll that talked and moved earlier! Creepily gorgeous and completely fascinating from the start to the end!" another one praised, looking evidently awed while the others agreed instantly by nodding enthusiastically.

"Too bad there was no talent scout! They would have completely fallen in love with senpai's acting if they had seen it!"

"Thank you," Kuroko gave the fresh men an unruffled smile and they flushed in unison.

"Kuroko-senpai, so cuuuuute!" now all of them started to look like little puppies wagging their tails, trying to get attention from their master.

"Oi!" Kagami felt the dangerous aura from those first years when they started to talk to Kuroko more animatedly. Apparently, the influence of Doll Princess on Kuroko's image was really enhancing the bluenet's charm in attracting _guys_. This had to stop or they would start to look like those creepy GoM members and the guys in their class when Kuroko was changing earlier.

"Alright, alright, all of you! Calm down and let Kuroko and Kagami rest first before you guys bother them to death!" Luckily, Coach Aida was perceptive enough, probably noticing that Kagami started to get irritated with all the noises and clapped her hands three times to get all the first years attention ( _read:_ to shut them up). It thoroughly worked like a charm because the first years knew better than to disobey her.

"Kagami! Kuroko! Come sit with us!" Hyuuga called from his table at the corner for the rescue, gesturing for them to come closer. Beside him was Kiyoshi, still in his vampire outfit, smiling at them while waving as well.

"Osh! Let's go, Kuroko," Kagami grabbed Kuroko's hand once again and pulled him to approach their captain's table.

"Talk to you guys later," Kuroko waved at the first years who seemed disappointed that they couldn't fuss over him (and Kagami) again.

"Senpai, thanks for watching our drama play," Kagami said as he took a seat across Kiyoshi, while Kuroko dutifully sat beside him, in front of Hyuuga's.

"Yah, but that play was indeed very interesting. Although the part where the GoM started to show up one by one was very surprising," Kiyoshi laughed slightly at that.

"Not just surprising, it shocked the crap out of us, seriously. What was your class thinking using them like that?" Hyuuga shook his head looking rather exasperated.

"Eh… our class president is a very willful woman for one, and the GoM (by Akashi's order) were willing to substitute for five of our class' players that mysteriously got stomachache after eating some poisonous _onigiri_ which suspiciously looked a lot like Coach Aida's deadly handmade ones…" Kagami explained aridly while Hyuuga's sweat dropped.

"Huh? Onigiri… ah, didn't Riko's _onigiri_ bento get stolen today?" Kiyoshi raised his eyebrows.

"Ah, you're right!" Suddenly Hyuuga exclaimed, seeming to realize it as well. "Then, those onigiris were probably Riko's… but how come it ended in your class' provision?" he looked both Kagami and Kuroko ridiculously.

"We do not know, but there is a rumor that someone wanted to sabotage our class play," Kuroko supplied evenly.

"Impossible… did the GoM themselves do it? I mean… they clearly tried to destroy the plot in the play by interrupting here and there," Hyuuga speculated.

"Hmm… but what is their reason for helping in the play then? It doesn't add up if their motivation is sabotaging it in the first place, right?" Kiyoshi subtly argued.

"Then who…?"

"Well, who cares? In the end, we still could perform and the play was over. No use in dwelling on it. The most important thing is we successfully delivered it even under such terrible circumstances," at least Kagami felt the satisfaction from it and it was more than enough to care less about the mastermind behind the accident.

"Kagami-kun is right," Kuroko said, agreeing quietly and Kagami couldn't help glancing at him and catching the bluenet's small, adoring smile. He immediately averted his gaze, starting to feel self aware again of how attractive Kuroko was.

Apparently, the gesture didn't escape Hyuuga and Kiyoshi's attention because they grinned at them knowingly and Kagami's face heated even more. "W-what?" and now he felt defensive because he disliked being teased, even though they hadn't said anything.

"Nothing… I just feel somewhat envious of how close you guys are," Hyuuga commented, totally suggestive.

"Wha—?!" Kagami was ready to protest, but Kuroko beat him to it.

"Are you not close with Kiyoshi-senpai as well, Hyuuga-senpai?" and he was so damn composed as he said it. It was forthrightly annoying! How come Kuroko wasn't embarrassed being teased like that and actually had the nerve to tease back?!

"W-what? We- we aren't like—!" Hyuuga almost choked on his drink as he sputtered, but Kiyoshi just chuckled.

"Oh, Kuroko is very perceptive, huh?"

"Kiyoshi!" Now, Hyuuga looked mortified while his hands reached for Kiyoshi's neck to throttle the taller guy.

Kagami was dumbfounded. "Eh?"

"We are NOT like that!" Hyuuga denied very hard, totally flustered as he shouted at Kagami and Kuroko, but mostly at Kagami who really had no clue about it since Kuroko seemed to know something already.

"Ahaha, Hyuuga is just shy," Kiyoshi was still laughing, now trapping both Hyuuga's wrists in his vice grip.

"Kiyoshi, knock it off! Or I'm seriously gonna kick your ass!" Hyuuga threatened with frantic tone.

"No matter how much he denies it, one way or another he will have to face it sooner or later," Kiyoshi said, not clear if he spoke to Hyuuga or to Kuroko and Kagami because he didn't really make any sense while Hyuuga was still yelling at him to shut up. "It's definitely there after all," he smiled adoringly at Hyuuga now, who seemed to flinch before he got even more uncomfortable as his face reddened up to his ears.

"Y-you idiot…!" Hyuuga looked very embarrassed, but there was something in his expression that remotely resembling overexcitement.

_Seriously?_ —Kagami hung his jaw open mouthed at the realization that both his seniors were apparently not just teammates anymore. _Since when?_

"Congratulation, Senpai," Kuroko said, still looking totally calm even though there was a tiny smile on his normally expressionless face.

"Nothing is worth congratulation at all!" Hyuuga reacted very badly at this, even though he visibly flushed even harder.

"Kagami and Kuroko too… don't evade the problem for too long," Kiyoshi added, pulling Hyuuga's closer despite the captain's loud protest and desperate effort to push him away.

Kagami looked down at his lap, suddenly feeling like bolting because his seniors were being lovey-dovey in front of him and Kuroko shamelessly (on Kiyoshi's part at least) and they apparently also sensed something about the 'changing' relationship between Seirin's light and shadow. Well, at least Kagami started to be aware that his feeling for Kuroko was complicated now because of what happened inside the changing room earlier. After all, he was _indeed_ aroused when he held Kuroko's body. Friend didn't feel like that towards his male friend, but for some reason, his body reacted to Kuroko's voice, to the sight of his figure, to his touch, to his… appeal.

Kagami was probably falling for Kuroko, and no matter how much he denied that, it didn't change the fact that it was there, like what Kiyoshi said. _But what about their friendship?_ Kuroko said they didn't need to label their relationship so soon, but without some kind of mark or label, how would Kagami know where he stood in Kuroko's life? He even felt possessive already as seeing firsthand how other people making eyes at Kuroko pissed the hell out of him.

Kagami was jerked out of his reverie when he felt a gentle touch on his hand and he noticed that Kuroko had slipped his fingers between Kagami's own, to his surprise. Kuroko didn't face his way, but- "We will try our best, Senpai," when the bluenet affirmed it, Kagami instinctively returned the comforting squeeze with his own firm one.

_Maybe it is the right time to go there. To come back to that place and face this properly…_ —Kagami convinced himself. He already liked Kuroko enough, probably more than anyone else. He didn't know if this 'like' was the same as 'love', but he and Kuroko could nurture it. Kagami knew he wanted to treasure his relationship with Kuroko. But most of all, he realized fully that would cherish Kuroko himself.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Midorima Shintarou was completely spent after he parted ways with the other GoM. He was tired beyond believe because he not only failed his purpose in coming to Seirin Spring Festival, but also helped accomplish the improvement of _things_ he didn't wish to see at all.

Midorima never said it out loud, but he treasured his GoM friends very much, really. Seeing them scattered around the first time was hard enough, but now he had to witness their ex-Sixth Phantom Player leave the shell once again to be together with that red haired buffoon. Even though he kind of understood now after seeing how sincere and compatible they were for each other, he still felt like a father sending his own daughter to her marriage. It was acutely bizarre.

" _Because all of you are my beloved family…"_

It was all because Kuroko (Doll Princess) said something like that. Midorima couldn't help taking that line seriously. They were indeed like a family after all. Now he just hoped that Kagami Taiga really could make Kuroko happy.

Midorima sighed as he fished out the straw doll he had made to curse Kagami initially, but now he could only stare at it attentively because cursing Kagami would only upset Kuroko. "You'd better take good care of him." He couldn't help muttering forebodingly, though.

"Oh, Great Wizard Midorima!"

Midorima winced at the name call and whirled around to glare scathingly at the owner of that familiar playful voice. "Shut it, Taka—!" he almost snapped, but his voice died in his throat as his eyes caught the shorter dark haired teen with a bouquet of flowers on his hand. "What the—!?"

Takao grinned ear to ear. "Congrats on becoming the most amazing wizard in the play, Shin-chan!" he then thrust the bouquet on Midorima's arms.

"W-what is this?" Midorima was perplexed when he accept it, totally baffled as he stared at the pink flowers. It was Sakura petals huddled together and wrapped with A3-sized drawing paper and tied with a green ribbon at the bottom. It didn't look sloppy, but it was too _ordinary_ for something to sell as well. Did Takao make this himself?

"Flowers for you, obviously!" Takao beamed. "Yah… Shin-chan was very great as the wizard earlier! Seriously, you got the most screen time after the king, you know! Even more than the lead characters!" he snickered as Midorima's cheeks heated.

"T-that's because Akashi kept butting in the scenes that weren't his part. Someone had to pull him back," Midorima pushed his glasses up his nose bridge, trying to conceal his embarrassment.

"But still, I'm glad I get to see Shin-chan's fatherly side!" Takao's teasing grin widened if it was possible. He looked like a cat eating a canary now.

"It-it was just an act!" Midorima protested, his face flaming even more.

"Ahaha! Shin-chan is being _tsundere_ again!" Now Takao laughed heartily, causing Midorima to blush even harder.

"Takao!"

"But really, Shin-chan… you have worked hard there. I'm sure Kuroko will appreciate it and treasure your feeling that cherishes him well as his ex-teammate and his family," now the Hawk Eyes owner reached up to ruffle Midorima's hair, smiling gently and understandingly.

Midorima was astounded at that. He didn't know why, probably because of those damned Hawk Eyes, but Takao could always see something that he desperately wanted to hide from other people, whether it was his feelings or anything else. It was seriously infuriating. But sometimes, Midorima was glad that he had Takao there with him too, because then he didn't have to say anything and yet there was someone that completely understood him without even trying.

"Shin-chan… you're being awfully quiet. Have you fallen for me?" Takao's teasing streak was back, completely ruining the mood and cause the irate vein to pop on Midorima's head.

"You…!" Now Midorima felt like strangling his partner for being a tactless fool. Yeah, he remembered then. "Right, what was that about earlier in the middle of the play? Saying something so misleading like that in public…! Have you no shame at all?" He reprimanded after that.

"Well, of course it was to make the play merrier and to tease Shin-chan because Shin-chan's reaction is hilarious," now Takao guffawed, frustrating Midorima very much.

"Quit that kind of joke! I hate it most when you make fun of something like that!" Midorima reached Takao's collar and shouted closer to his face.

"Eeh? But it wasn't a joke," Takao said in defense, confusing Midorima because didn't he just say that he just wanted to tease him? "True, the purpose was to mess with Shin-chan, but I really meant every word I screamed there. I get jealous if Shin-chan, even if it's only your persona, is made to fall for another guy aside me," he said while reaching his hand up to cup Midorima's cheek.

Midorima could only widen his eyes, taken aback and very dumbfounded. "Eh?"

"Shin-chan is dense too," Takao just smiled and leaned upward to give Midorima a kiss at the corner of his mouth, causing Midorima to explode in blazing crimson color instantly, bewildered and totally flabbergasted.

"Y-you…! W-why did you suddenly do that?!" He covered his mouth with the back of his hand, almost falling down as he stepped back because his knees buckled slightly.

"It's not sudden, Shin-chan. Sheesh… it's because I like Shin-chan, of course! It's been for awhile now," Takao put his hands on his own waist, pouting slightly. "But Shin-chan never realizes it despite my effort to seduce you and tease you all the time. I get tired of waiting," he huffed.

"Seduce— _what_?" Midorima was sure that his face was as red as tomato now because it felt burned, so hot like a furnace, and he was still trying to wrap his disturbed mind up to the fact that Takao was crushing on him all this time and he had never noticed it. He thought that all the teasing was for Takao's amusement after all, so he never took it seriously.

"Well, but that Doll Princess play really inspired me, so… Shin-chan, let's date!" now Takao moved forward and invaded Midorima's personal space again, causing the green haired boy to back off until his back hit the wall behind him while Takao's extended arms trapped his body from both sides.

"Ta-… Takao…?" Midorima's heart beat so hard and fast in… in anticipation now. He didn't know why, but Takao's clear, enticing grayish-blue eyes pinned his emerald orbs with desire and he couldn't move because of it.

"Shin-chan… I like you very much. How about you?" Takao asked, and he seemed bearing his heart so openly, offering it to Midorima on silver platter, either to accept or to destroy. It was Takao risking their entire friendship and partnership, and Midorima felt like he could burst any moment now.

Takao was so forward and there was no hesitation in his words and eyes. It was the first time Midorima saw someone feel so strongly for him. Even though it was quite awkward, Midorima couldn't say he wasn't happy. Midorima looked another way for a moment before he gazed back at Takao's unyielding stare. He couldn't run away from those eyes… those eyes that saw him through completely.

Though, it would be very embarrassing to say it out loud, so Midorima answered Takao's confession with something he could do through gesture. He slowly lifted his hands to frame Takao's face before he leaned into him and kissed Takao on his lips softly.

When Midorima pulled back, Takao's face was flushed pink, looking very happy and delighted. "I love you, Shin-chan!" He immediately hugged Midorima tightly, sounding very excited and giddy. Now Midorima realized fully why he could easily understand Kuroko's feeling when he decided to leave the nest.

It was because someone special… someone like Kagami Taiga and Takao Kazunari, who saw them for who they are instead of what they are, who willingly opened their arms and caught them unconditionally even after they wore off their title as the Generation of Miracle.

Even if they were just merely Kuroko Tetsuya and Midorima Shintarou….

**End of Chapter 13**

**Tbc...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wait a damn second! Why did MidoTaka hook up first before KagaKuro?! *shocked* That… that last part was purely accidental, I swear. I actually want to show the 'changing' relationship for the GoM more… subtly, but Takao's personality ruined it completely *ugh*. Oh, and sorry for getting carried away in making KagaKuro fan-service, even though technically nothing really happened… haha, poor Kagami. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter as well as I do making it. It was totally FUN! XD Feed back?


	14. Under the Starry Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Midorima and Takao, now is Aomine and Kise's turn, also Murasakibara and Himuro, plus Kagami and Kuroko. Will it turn out as smooth as Midorima and Takao's one?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I'm sorry for the very late update. My sister in law was in labor a few days ago and I had to accompany her in the hospital after she gave birth to my second niece. She's extremely CUTE! XD~<3 Also, I got distracted by the other stories plot whenever I tried to type this chapter down... *lol* Anyway, you readers are AWESOME! Thanks for the comments and kudos until now. Well, please~ ENJOY this new chapter!  
>  **Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke and its characters © Tadatoshi Fujimaki. Luna only plays with the characters and no profit is made from this fan fiction.**  
>  **Warning:** _shounen ai, slight oOC-ness, language, possible spelling mistakes and grammar errors, craziness of high school boys, bizarreness and insanity, AND beware of suggestive fan-service! *loool*_

  
**Chapter 14:** _**Under the Starry Sky** _  


* * *

" _Shin-chan, I love you!"_

Aomine and Kise cringed, making ridiculous expression, when they accidentally heard the forward, unquestionable love confession from one Takao Kazunari to their ex-Teikou basketball teammate, the Number One Shooter, Midorima Shintarou, as they passed the back of Seirin High main building to get some fresh air.

Kise stopped walking to instantly hide behind the bushes while yanking Aomine's hand down with him so as to conceal their presence from the two love-birds ahead. "The hell are you doing, Kise?!"

At Aomine's nuanced protest, Kise put his index finger in front of his mouth and- "Ssssh! Quiet, Aomine-chi! Read the mood, please! It's Takao-chi and Midorima-chi's moment!" the blond looked upward slightly at Aomine, suddenly feeling his heart thumping faster, somewhat getting excited.

Aomine made another face, aimed at Kise now. "You and your nasty hobby…! Why do you like spying on people business so much?" He huffed, looking mildly annoyed and mostly indolent as he stuck a finger in one of his ears.

"Sheesh, it's not just 'any people', Aomine-chi. It's Midorima-chi!" Kise pouted slightly, defending his good intention.

"Yeah, you said the same thing when Tetsu and Satsuki were on a shopping date before*," Aomine commented dryly, "-and yet you just wanted to satisfy your curiosity, right?" He shook his head at Kise's antics.

"Isn't it normal?" Kise sulked, jutting out his lower lip in defiance at Aomine's accusation. "I mean, Midorima-chi is also one of us. Aren't you a little bit interested about his private life?"

"No way," Aomine grunted, facing another way nonchalantly. "I don't want to know anything about that weirdo even if I'm paid."

"Aomine-chi, that's totally mean! Aren't we family?" Kise started to whine rather loudly now, completely overlooking that they were supposed to be discreet because Midorima and Takao were still there as well with them.

" _Kise~!"_

Well, too late, because Midorima already spotted them. Kise winced as he heard the green haired teen's eerie voice. Then he slowly turned around while trembling in fear as he noticed Midorima's murderous glare and venomous tone directed solely at him.

_Oh, shit!_

"Mi-Midorima-chi…! This is not—!" Kise tried to explain while shaking and paling severely.

" _DIE!"_

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

"Haaah, that idiot…" Aomine only drawled lazily when Kise was shrieking in a lot of pain and horror as Midorima was kicking his ass and beating the shit out of Kise for eavesdropping on his and Takao's very private and sensitive 'conversation', while the Hawk Eye owner were groaning and covering his tomato-red face in embarrassment.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Midorima-chi is so very cruel…" Kise was still sobbing and sniffling while dragging his haggard body as Aomine and he walked away from Midorima and Takao. Luckily, Midorima didn't have a heart to murder the blond. Well, Takao talked the Oha Asa freak out of it with a lot of playful promises of something naughtily great.

Of course, Midorima immediately changed his mark to Takao and furiously ran after the running away and laughing boy for embarrassing him further. Aomine was sure that Takao already had the bespectacled weirdo dance around his little fingers by now.

 _Who would have thought that Midorima has the hots for that Hawk Eye?_ —certainly, neither Aomine nor Kise expected such development, especially right after they officially let go of their ex-Phantom Sixth Player to be together with that Seirin's red haired bastard.

"I still can't believe I saw such offending scene. My eyes were cooked for sure…" Aomine sighed, feeling rather scarred for life for the second time today (after the haunted house fiasco) when Takao started to sweet talk Midorima and the guy blushed like a virginal maiden.

Aomine thought his own brain was _fried_ at the surfacing idea that the green haired boy could look _cute_ as well. His eyes officially needed checking up. He still kind of believed that Midorima was asexual after all.

"B-but… I kind of understand, I mean… Midorima-chi and Takao-chi always looks very compatible in court," Kise commented slowly.

"And getting along in court means dating? Are you out of your mind? Then all of basketball players in the same situation will perform a gay orgy," Aomine scoffed. Kise was always so naïve, but this was going too far even for him.

"Sheesh, Aomine-chi, I don't mean it like that!" Kise puffed out his cheeks like a five year old, huffing in exasperation. "Aside from getting along in court, Takao-chi always has the patience to deal with Midorima-chi's selfishness off the court as well. Don't you see how Midorima-chi practically makes Takao-chi escort him everywhere using that rear-car bicycle all the time? Even the best friend won't do something like that. He's not a lackey after all. Takao-chi must like Midorima-chi very much for going so far only to please him!" he exclaimed surely, apparently totally convinced with the idea. Now he looked upward at the cloudless blue sky with a happy grin adorning his face.

"You think so?" Aomine took a moment to think about it as well. His mind couldn't help agreeing Kise's opinion. Though, like hell if he would admit that out loud.

"Yep, I think Takao-chi suits Midorima-chi very much," Kise faced Aomine once again, beaming in confidence.

"Does this theory apply to anyone else?" Aomine was suddenly curious. Surely, there were Kagami and Kuroko who fitted the category, but he wondered if there were others.

"Hmm… let's see…" Kise scrunched up his face, seeming to think deeply. A few seconds passed, and a pleased, content, small smile bloomed on Kise's beautiful face. "Well… I can make myself an example as well…"

Aomine felt an abrupt pinprick in his heart. Something was wrong. Why was Kise showing such gentle expression? Who was he thinking when he issued such heartfelt confession?

An image of a certain dark haired, blue eyed senior entered his mind, freezing his movement. The way Kise always smiled and clung to Kasamatsu before he graduated from Kaijou (even until now) gripped at Aomine's chest, as if squeezing it excruciatingly hard. He stopped walking, reaching up to cover his mouth in a sudden realization.

Why did Aomine feel this sudden sinking feeling when he thought that Kise might like Kasamatsu _like that_? Even when he saw with his own naked eyes that Kuroko completely smitten with Kagami, it didn't affect him this much, only sparking his possessive streak as Kuroko's former light… but, why did he experience this gush of fear when it was about Kise going away to be together with someone else, to some places Aomine couldn't reach?

Aomine's hand instinctively moved on its own accord as it suddenly grabbed Kise's wrist, halting the blonde's steps as well. Kise turned around slightly to face Aomine with puzzlement in his warm honey colored eyes. "Aomine-chi?"

Aomine couldn't speak for a moment, not knowing what to articulate. His mind was a jumbled mess and he didn't know why he felt this urgency to say something… _anything,_ before Kise seriously walked away from him for good. "Last summer… during our Inter High basketball match, you said something about giving up on admiring and chasing after me."

Kise widened his eyes slightly before he quickly looked away. "E-eh? Wha-what is it, Aomine-chi, suddenly bringing up that embarrassing moment…?" His cheeks turned a bit rosy, and he looked rigid and uncomfortable, but Aomine wasn't discouraged to continue. He needed to know.

"Were you… seriously giving up on me?" Aomine asked earnestly, his eyes boring deeply into Kise's evading orbs.

Kise was quiet for a moment, still not looking at Aomine, before he glanced back at him. "W-why did you ask such thing, Aomine-chi?" he gave Aomine a tentative smile. "I already copied Aomine-chi and the others' styles perfectly even though it's only for five minutes. There's no point in talking more about—"

"Kise," Aomine cut his ramble and Kise flinched slightly. "Don't answer my question with another question," he continued, not releasing his serious gaze from Kise's wavering one.

"Aomine-chi…" Kise seemed hesitant and rather bewildered at Aomine's insistence, so he elaborated some explanation for the blond.

"I know I can be dense most of the time. I sure as hell didn't realize the meaning of your words at that time because there was only the basketball match inside my head. But I've been thinking since then… I've been mulling over your words carefully and it just occurred to me now… that I don't like the idea of you giving up on me," Aomine tightened the grip on Kise's wrist at this unexpected declaration that came from his own mouth.

Hell, even Aomine didn't know he could be so thick. The spike-like feeling that bothered him like a thorn in his side all along after he heard Kise's subtle confession at that time… it was because of _this_.

Aomine didn't want Kise to stop admiring him. He wished for Kise to keep chasing after him, never giving up on him.

"Aomine-chi…!" Kise gaped at Aomine in surprise, no. That was an understatement. He looked positively stunned. "What… what are you talking about?" there was something in Kise's bright eyes that stared unblinkingly at his own sapphire ones; something that resembled _hope_.

"I let Tetsu give up on me because there was nothing I could do about it. But you… you're different. I've been waiting until this moment where you can catch up, so… don't give up on me." For once, Aomine wanted to be honest with his words and feelings, because if he couldn't be, an idiot like Kise would never understand.

"Ao…mine-chi…" Kise's topaz orbs glazed slightly as Aomine kept his gaze fixed deeply and somberly on them. He also pulled the blond to position his body as close as possible to Aomine's, while he leaned into Kise slowly, gradually.

Alright, maybe Aomine was the fool here. He honestly didn't know what he was doing. What Kise said last summer… what he meant with his admission, maybe he read too much into it and it was all in his head because Aomine was a delusional dimwitted guy.

But even so, Aomine could careless at this moment, because he only wanted Kise to know how he felt about the Kaijou's ace. "Kise… to you, I…!"

"Oi, Kise!"

Sadly, the intense, moving, poignant moment was instantly broken by the sudden call of the blonde's name, surprising both Aomine and Kise as the tan ace spotted someone running to their direction.

Kise turned his head around slightly as well in reaction and his expression brightened tenfold as the blond saw that person. "Kasamatsu-senpai!"

The way the air around Kise turned sparkly… the way his eyes lit up with all glittery flowers seeming to sprout around him… they were hints, powerful enough for Aomine to realize that he might have been too late this time. It was so clear in his enlarged eyes when he witnessed the scene unfold under his nose, that Kise _really_ did like this older person romantically.

Aomine couldn't help gradually loosening his clutch from Kise's wrist before letting it go completely, his hand losing its strength and falling down lifelessly on his side, along with his heart that seemed about to plummet as well at the sight.

 _That's right—_ Aomine thought silently and regretfully. _That smile isn't reserved for me anymore…._

**#**

"You…! Don't just go and disappear on me like that, idiot!" Kasamatsu barked while punching Kise on the back angrily as the blond yelped out a painful, frantic apology.

"I'm sorry, Senpai. I had to look for fresh air after suffocating in that changing room…" Kise made an excuse while making a thrown out puppy expression, and Kasamatsu instantly remembered why he was looking for the blond in the first place.

"Aaaah! That's right! How the hell did you end up on that play?! You have a LOT of things to explain, mister!" Kasamatsu exclaimed loudly while eyeing the younger boy with narrowed eyes irately.

"It wasn't my fault! I swear! Akashi-chi suddenly ordered us to go on stage! We didn't have a choice or he would make us pay! We even didn't prepare for anything like that! Sheesh… imagine how hard it was for us, please…!" Kise cried now, acting spoiled and faking tears just because Kasamatsu was weak against it (despite his refusal to admit it) and would eventually fell into his ploy and coddle him in the end.

Kasamatsu harrumphed. "Anyway, it's time to go. You finished what you came here for, right?" he asked, glaring expectantly at the blond boy who suddenly became very quiet. "Kise?"

Kasamatsu stared at him more attentively to read him better, but what he found caused Kasamatsu to raise his eyebrows high, especially when he noticed Kise's face more clearly. For some reason, Kise's cheeks were colored in dark shade of red and his expression… he looked very troubled, like he was about to cry, yet it wasn't from sadness or anger.

"What's with that face?" Kasamatsu wondered out loud and all of a sudden, Kise dropped himself to squat down and cover his steaming face with the both of his hands, hiding his apparently very mortified expression from Kasamatsu, or from the world in general, ultimately surprising him. "O-oi? What's wrong?"

Kasamatsu hated it very much when he sounded like he was worried about Kise's well being, but he just couldn't help it. Even though he was no longer in Kaijou, Kise would remain his 'pain in the ass' junior for a life time. Moreover, Kise apparently wasn't able to answer Kasamatsu's question coherently because all Kasamatsu heard from the muffled response was something along the line of 'Aomine-chi' and 'unforeseen' and 'so cool'.

Kasamatsu sighed deeply in resignation. _Sheesh, the Miracles and their enigmatic conduct…!—_ though, he couldn't help noticing that Aomine who had been with Kise earlier was nowhere in sight now. _Huh? I thought they were talking about something important just now…._

"What… what should I do, Senpai?"

Kise's quivering voice brought Kasamatsu's attention back to the still crouching blonde who was still hugging his knees with both arms now and hiding his lower face behind them.

Seeing the flustered look, Kasamatsu couldn't help letting out another long suffering sigh as he ruffled Kise's soft golden hair. "What happened?" He was still in standing position, so he couldn't exactly observe Kise's face clearly, but the blonde's color seemed like turning into a boiled lobster's at this point.

Kasamatsu wondered why Kise hadn't hyperventilated yet, because that was the usual pattern.

"I-I… decided once that I'd give up on Aomine-chi, but… now I'm not sure I want to anymore…" Kise drowned his face once again on his arms and knees, flushing darker.

_His crush hits the top notch, huh?_

It wasn't a secret that Kise had a man-crush on Aomine for the longest time. Even the Kaijou's peers knew about it since the first time the blond shared stories about his days at Teikou with the amazing ace of Generation of Miracle.

However, apparently it wasn't a simple man-crush anymore now. Kise's feeling had developed during those years of him chasing after the tan ace, into a full blown romantic attraction. Kasamatsu wasn't against the same-sex relationship, but he wasn't sure what to say to the blond about his obvious desire for the tan ace's affection if Kise asked a love-advice from him.

Sadly, Kasamatsu's romantic relationship, or by any means, the _lack_ there of, as much as painful it was to admit, wouldn't help Kise in the slightest with his problem. Still, Kasamatsu was wise enough to grab the situation by looking at the facts. By the look of what happened between the blond and the tan ace before Kasamatsu interrupted them earlier, it seemed that the tan ace had said something that caused the blond to break down right now.

Kasamatsu decided to go with a question that had been nagging him instead. "Then why didn't you say that to him before he walked away?"

Kise snapped out of embarrassment right away in reaction to the question and made a _'CRAP!'_ expression before he stood up and bowed at Kasamatsu while thanking him for the advice and immediately ran away before Kasamatsu could even respond to him.

_That rude bastard…!_

"That's it! You're going home ALONE!" Kasamatsu yelled at the fleeing blonde while giving him a raised fist, before he huffed in irritation and turned to leave the premise. Kasamatsu was so going home.

_Screw Kise and his antics!_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Atsushi, until when are you going to stay and eat here?" Himuro was in the verge of snapping the last string of patience even though he was still smiling sweetly at the oversized child, because Murasakibara hadn't moved from his seat since they sat there hours ago at all, still dutifully (and keenly) eating the snacks purchased in class 3C Cosplay Cafe.

"But… they are all very delicious…" Murasakibara sighed in bliss with a dreamy look on his face. "I really don't wanna leave. This is heaven…."

Some female customers giggled as they ogled at Murasakibara and heard his words. Apparently, he really caught attention because of his extreme height and unusual hair color, added with that adorable look on his face and Himuro as his companion… they were the practically _manekineko**_ for the class now, stealing the real mascot job to attract customers.

"Wow, they sure are standing out…" one of Seirin's members that Himuro identified as Koganei Shinji, the actual class mascot that chose _not to_ wear his cat-maid costume anymore (well, only the dress, but he put back on the ears, the tail and the bell), commented with a corn size of sweat sliding down his cheek. His taller companion, Mitobe (from what Himuro recalled his name was), that constantly brought Murasakibara's order to Himuro's table, nodded mutely beside Koganei.

 _It's not like I want us to attract too much attention!_ —Himuro replied inwardly, but pretended not to notice their gazes. _Surely, the foods and the snacks here are amazingly good, but this is another level of gluttonous act even for Atsushi_ —he grimly continued his train of thought while watching Murasakibara intently.

Murasakibara was big enough as it was. If he ate too many sweets without moving his body around, he would get fat and that was a sight Himuro refused to see.

"Alright, we can buy some to go. There are a lot of classes we have to visit," Himuro replied the purple haired boy tenderly, persuading him to stand by pulling at his arm lightly.

"Eeeh? But I haven't tried the special parfait…" Murasakibara pouted slightly, giving Himuro a little kitten's look despite his giant body size.

Himuro's heart went _'kyuuuuun'_ at the sight, making him flush a little. He hated that Murasakibara could always use the same trick over and over to get what he wanted from Himuro because it always worked every time. Himuro couldn't help sighing slightly before he turned to face Koganei who seemed to perk at his 'calling' look.

"What can I do for you- _nya_?" the brunet gave him a cute smile.

"One special parfait for him, but—!" Himuro glanced at Murasakibara's beaming look warningly. "This is the last order and we have to move. We still have to catch a train back to Akita, Atsushi."

"Eh? But we can always stay the night here, Muro-chin," Murasakibara said slowly, looking at Himuro who raised his eyebrows, wondering what Murasakibara meant. "It's Friday. We don't have to rush back to Akita since we have day off tomorrow. I can rent a room in a hotel and we can sleep together." He smiled innocently.

Himuro's face exploded in strawberry color, burning in embarrassment at the implication and innuendo of what Murasakibara _suggested_ they do by sleeping together. "W-what are you—?!" even the ever so collected Himuro would sputter in bewilderment when he was faced with such offer.

"I want to spend more time with Muro-chin, eating together, bathing and sleeping at night together," Murasakibara spoke ingenuously, apparently not seeing anything weird with what he was saying. Himuro could only cover his scorching face with his palms, trying to hide his shame at imagining those 'things' that would entail such intention if Murasakibara was mature enough to even think about it.

Alas, that wasn't the case at all.

 _This is so embarrassing! He doesn't mean anything 'like that' even though he's speaking so provocatively!_ —Himuro had to get his brain out of the gutter before he died out of shame. He decided that he was too self-conscious about this matter and was surprised that Koganei was still eyeing them with a knowing smile.

"One special parfait for _couple_ coming!" the cat eared boy chuckled and retreated to get the order and Himuro could only flush some more for being so obvious with his expression and uncomfortable gesture.

_Ah, this is that drama's fault! I get to see Atsushi's mature look in the play, so I start to imagine stuff that shouldn't have resurfaced at all!_

Of course, Himuro's dilemma still continued in steady pace towards the peak of the hill before it would tumble and crash down at one point later.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Sheesh, Dai-chan can be such a pain," Momoi frowned as she looked around the area.

"F-forgive me, but he-… he's probably still resting somewhere," Sakurai smiled ruefully at her, seeming to try to soothe her.

"Yes, but he should at least have a decency to pick his damn phone when he's called! I want to congratulate Tetsu-kun in person! But Dai-chan has to go _missing_ after the play that we have to look for him now! He was the one who wanted to come here in the first place and now he ditched us!" she was pissed off beyond belief. Aomine always did things like this. He should at least think about how he inconvenienced the others.

"But Momoi-san always relents in the end, right? I-I'm sorry for not helping, but you're so nice to always look after him," Sakurai complimented her. She really didn't understand why he slipped an apology there, though. Well, she appreciated his endeavor in praising her effort in taking care of their handful ace, though.

"It's not by choice…" Momoi still sulked. It wasn't completely true, by the way. She could always turn a blind-eye on Aomine's escapades, but she just didn't have a heart to let him be. "I myself always wonder why I have to be responsible for that pompous jerk all the time… I must be secretly masochist," she let out a long suffering sigh.

Mother hen or not, if she didn't get rid of Aomine soon enough, she wouldn't be able to get a boyfriend. She didn't want to be Aomine's mother for the rest of her youthful life, damn it!

"T-that's not true!" Sakurai cried out suddenly, surprising Momoi by his raised volume. "I-I'm sorry, but I think Momoi-san is a wonderful person! You're… you're an amazing girl who can care for people from the bottom of your heart even though you know it won't be easy. If I could do something about it, I'd like to help you out too, but-… ah, I'm sorry for speaking too much! Waah, what am I saying!" he then gradually turned red like a steaming furnace before ending his babble by covering his face, looking very much embarrassed.

Momoi was honestly rather amazed. She had never paid attention before because she was too preoccupied in taking care of Aomine and Touou basketball team in general. She also never looked beyond Sakurai's basketball ability that was very important for her team, but now that she interacted with the nervous teen in personal level, she could really feel that he was a really good guy. Sadly, he had low self-esteem that wasn't her type, but he could be a remarkable friend.

Momoi couldn't help chuckling at Sakurai's antics as the taller boy flushed some more while muttering 'sorry for acting stupid' lowly, but she wouldn't have that. "What are you apologizing for, Sakurai-kun? You're so nice for cheering me up," she giggled again, slapping Sakurai's back playfully. "Thank you."

A small happy smile bloomed on Sakurai's face. "You're welcome," he said before he noticed something and blinked. "Huh?"

"What?" Momoi raised her eyebrow, following his line of sight and found Aomine eating like crazy in yakisoba stand near the entrance of the building. "Aaaah, Dai-chan!" she instantly shouted, calling his name, but Aomine didn't seem to hear as he was still furiously stuffing the fried-noodles into his mouth.

Momoi's sweat dropped at the funny and yet scary view. "What is he doing? Is he that hungry?"

"Ah… I'm sorry, but he looks more like stress-eating rather than hungry…" Sakurai commented timidly, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek as well.

"Dai-chan and stress eating?" Momoi made a disgruntled face. Stress and Aomine couldn't be in one sentence. After all, she had never seen Aomine like that. He would sulk and pull out and avoid people when he had problem, never once did he do something as uncharacteristic as stress-eating. "Mukkun I understand, but Dai-chan…?" It was plainly impossible.

"Maybe someone breaks his heart. I heard people would eat to bury the void after they lost their love," Sakurai seemed thoughtful before he looked up in realization and "I'm sorry! I've said too much unnecessary assumption!" he profusely apologized again even though Momoi was silent only because he could have been right.

Aomine had never had love problem before after all. Well, there was that thing with Kuroko, but he insisted that there was nothing between them, and he didn't seem to lie because Momoi would know. It was always complicated between those two, but this was different. Maybe it wasn't Kuroko this time.

Momoi felt a headache coming. "Sakurai-kun… will you do me a favor to talk to Dai-chan?" Momoi turned to face Sakurai by making use of her teary eyes to make the taller boy feel obliged to grant her wish, no matter how unreasonable it was.

Sakurai seemed about to go into a full blown panic attack with a string of apology at the impossibility, but Momoi added her pleading look with helpless gesture that could even get her to meet the Emperor of Japan if she wanted to. "Please?"

Sakurai could only stare at her in disbelief before he finally nodded in resignation. "I'm sorry… but I only can do my best here…" the brunet seemed very much pressured, but he still steeled his heart and went to greet Aomine in the distance.

"Yosh, now I'll go looking for Tetsu-kun!" Momoi hummed, turning around to walk away. It was a first step to dump Aomine to someone else's care. Sakurai was probably too timid to control Aomine, but if he showed him those little cute smiles, even Aomine would think twice before making him cry.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Whoa…" Kagami looked at the ceiling of their decorated class in awe. "This is amazing. How the hell our class had time to put these things together in the haze of our lessons and drama preparation?"

"To put it simply, it is muscles strength mixed with careful planning and genius thinking." Kuroko's voice emerged beside him, though Kagami knew he was with Kuroko all this time, he still could feel surprised hearing his words so suddenly. Kuroko was too silent all this time after all.

"You're giving too much credit for our class' thinkers," Kagami retorted, looking at Kuroko in mock surprise. Why did muscles strength only get one portion while careful planning and genius thinking got the rest?

"Obviously because they carefully planned where to put what in order to zap our class into such beautiful planetarium," Kuroko nodded, replying monotonously.

"Still, without the muscles effort, it would only stay as 'planning', right?" Kagami argued.

"I did say it was the mix of strength and brain, though," Kuroko looked at Kagami's eyes, knowing completely that he had won the argument as Kagami scowled at him.

"Alright, you win," Kagami sighed. "But still… our class went all out for this, huh?" He stared upward at the sparkling little lamps that were aranged in a way which mimicked various stars constellations. He only recognized some group of stars that was included in zodiac signs, but for Kagami, Ursa Major was the most prominent so far.

"Sadly, they don't include Andromeda. And that is the biggest one too…" Kuroko let out a small smile, seeming to be enjoying the view as well.

"They probably don't have any room for such big stars constellation," Kagami glanced at Kuroko slightly, no longer looking at those twinkling lamps in the dark curtain that resembled midnight sky as he paid more mindful attention to Kuroko's small physique.

Seriously, Kagami had thought a lot about how he felt for Kuroko after they spoke with Kiyoshi and Hyuuga earlier. He realized that he and Kuroko couldn't avoid the issue between them any longer. Surely, Kagami knew he was attracted to Kuroko, and by the look of it, Kuroko probably felt the same way about him.

However, Kagami also still wasn't sure if this would be the right choice. They still had two years in high school. Even though the entire school apparently thought they were already _together_ , would it be really okay to entertain the idea and make it true? How would society look at them afterwards? It wasn't that Kagami would care so much how they thought about him, but what if this hurt Kuroko as well?

Moreover, being a couple meant Kagami and Kuroko would have to face challenges as lovers… what if Kagami got overly possessive and restrained Kuroko's freedom and in avertedly caused him pain? What if Kuroko came to hate him because he couldn't be sensitive enough towards his feelings and needs? Kagami was well known for his dense personality, if by some chance he acted too tactless for Kuroko's preference…!

 _God! All these uncertainties are killing me!_ —Kagami scratched his head curtly in frustration. He was still full of doubt. He couldn't help imagine that taking that huge leap to make clear of his and Kuroko's status was still too big for him. Even though he was usually reckless in about almost everything, he just didn't want to risk his 'relationship' with Kuroko for some unknown things that he wasn't familiar with.

Kuroko must have thought that Kagami was a lousy coward. Heck, Kagami himself thought like that. For one, even though he knew that he and Kuroko would hit it off perfectly, he wasn't sure of what laid after that.

" _I'll protect her for the rest of my life."_

Even though he could say it so confidently in the Doll Princess play, Kagami couldn't help feeling like a hypocrite for not being able to be optimistic about those words in real life. Could he really protect Kuroko with his almost non-existence experience?

"Kagami-kun?"

Kagami blinked once as he heard the call and by the time he realized it, he found a pair of aquamarine colored eyes staring at him with a glint of query inside them. Kagami couldn't help gazing at those orbs deeply, apparently making Kuroko wonder.

"You have been quiet for some time now," Kuroko spoke slowly, his moving lips capturing Kagami's attention right away.

Kagami had kissed those small plump lips before… such beautiful pink color… and they were very soft as well. The girls applied some lip balm on Kuroko before, along with the lipstick. The rich red color of the lipstick was wiped clean, but it still left Kuroko's natural soft color.

"…-not like you for being so… Kagami-kun?"

It fascinated Kagami a little… okay, a lot, that he couldn't really catch what Kuroko was saying because his mind was too preoccupied by how attractive Kuroko was. He was aware that Kuroko was bemused of his silent treatment, but since he was still mulling over various kinds of things in his mind, he couldn't really do anything but keep quiet.

Now, Kagami couldn't have been wrong. He knew best this attraction he felt for Kuroko… was not an attraction he felt for a simple crush anymore. Because at that moment, he couldn't help feeling that there was nothing he would want more other than to kiss him and make Kuroko his and his alone.

"Kuroko," finally after much consideration (and because he was a single minded idiot), Kagami decided to be a man and went with his gut.

_Because Kuroko is worth it._

"Yes?" Kuroko still kept his unwavering gaze at Kagami's crimson eyes.

"Let's date." Kagami said it with so much conviction that his will power could muster. It was unromantic at all, he knew, but Kagami wouldn't have any other way to ask for such life-changing request; because it was intense and much more serious than any feeling he had ever felt for anyone or anything other than basketball.

Kuroko widened his eyes for a moment, seemingly surprised, before his expression softened and a small delighted smile bloomed like a heavenly flower. "Let's," he agreed and Kagami couldn't help his heart fluttering in happiness and joy at the acceptance.

Kagami reached his rather shaky hand to touch Kuroko's supple cheek and leaned down his face, slowly lowering his gaze sexily before giving Kuroko a light kiss on the lips. Kuroko gradually closed his eyes as well, reaching his hands up to rest on Kagami's chest, apparently relishing in the wonderful moment as much as he could. They were completely aware that they couldn't say the 'L' word yet, but… this would be enough for now.

Kagami moved his other hand and sneaked on Kuroko's waist, pulling his body closer, while he opened his mouth to lick at Kuroko's bottom lip, causing the shorter boy to audibly gasp and clench his fingers tighter on Kagami's uniform.

Seeing it as a permission to go further, Kagami slowly dipped his tongue inside Kuroko's mouth, tasting the teal haired boy for the first time. Even though they had kissed several times now, this was their first shared deep kiss, and Kagami wanted to make this experience good and special for both of them.

Kagami wasn't hurried and certainly wasn't rushed as he appreciated Kuroko's flavor, sweet and delicious like vanilla, mixed with something that was unique and one of a kind. He didn't want to scare Kuroko, so he coaxed Kuroko to follow his example bit by bit, until Kuroko shyly stirred his tongue as well, meeting Kagami's in the middle of his adventure inside his virgin cavern.

Their tongues danced together in languid motion. It was slow, hot and arousing; and Kagami had to shift his hand behind Kuroko's neck to angle their position, so he could get a better access to deepen their kiss more prominently; and thus they could savor each other's natural essences even more. The kiss was so passionate it left them completely breathless.

Kagami didn't know how long it was going on, but when he finally released the kiss, it was only due to the dire need of oxygen. They gasped in a lungful of air, hard breaths mingling together and foreheads resting on each other's. Kagami still felt his lips tingle from the kiss and butterflies in his stomach keep flapping their wings _and_ his temperature considerably heat up. He must have been blushing. Although he was self-conscious for acting like a fucking girl, he didn't feel too bad because he could see Kuroko's cheeks colored as well.

"Kuroko…" in the middle of his panting, Kagami called Kuroko who was still rather winded.

"Yes…?" the teal haired boy's voice was low and husky, and Kagami really wanted to make him moan with such sexy voice. But, he had a more important thing to do after all.

"Stay with me," Kagami asked deeply.

"Yes," and Kuroko answered full-heartedly.

They stayed holding each other like that for some time, and even though there was lack of words between them to convey how they felt towards each other, their joined hand and fingers, 'their skin-to-skin connection' under the starry sky of class 2B planetarium spoke volume, at least loud enough for them that at that very moment Kuroko was the most important person in Kagami's life and vice-versa.

**End of Chapter 14**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Additional Note:**

***** Referring to the bonus pages on a certain chapter in Krobasu manga (I forgot what chapter), but there was a time when Kuroko and Momoi went on a date (according to Momoi, Kise and Aomine, when they were actually just shopping for supply), and Kise and Aomine followed them (on Kise's insistence).

** _ **Maneki-neko:**_ cat figurine that's superstitiously believed to have power to bring customers into a shop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright~ this time is for the serious stuffs! After much consideration, I decided this chapter to be the turning point for our mind characters, and of course for the supporting characters. Also, I finally gave some screen time for Sakurai and Momoi too *lol*. Next chapter will be even more complicated for the supporting characters (AoKise and MuraHimu) and I will probably put some more AkaFuri (because there are a lot of requests for this pair for some reason). I'm still not sure how to fit in Sakurai here, but I guess he'll have his moment as well later XD. So, what do you guys think? Feed back is definitely my muse to write~ ^_^


	15. The 'Love' Game (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And things get hectic, especially for Aomine and Kise as Sakurai is accidentally involved in their tangled feelings... also, it will be interesting for the intended couples as the game begins...!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh… I'm so very sorry for the super long wait I have put you guys through to read this one chapter. Damn, every time I updated, I must have said those words over and over again. You must be sick reading it. I'm very sorry. Real life just doesn't know how to give a rest for me to sit down and write without interruption. Anyway, it's close to the celebration of Eid Mubarack, so I believe I'll get even busier these days… But no worries! I won't stop this story until every GoM get to be together with someone! (That's a promise!). Now, please enjoy this new chapter!  
>  **Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke and its characters © Tadatoshi Fujimaki. Luna only plays with the characters and no profit is made from this fan fiction.**  
>  **Warning:** _shounen ai, slight oOC-ness, language, possible spelling mistakes and grammar errors, craziness of high school boys, bizarreness and insanity!_

  
**Chapter 15:** _**The 'Love' Game (Part 1)** _   


* * *

Akashi was looking outside the window inside a certain classroom at the third floor. Now he was taking a break after he parted ways with the other GoM members. He had been thinking about everything that happened in the span of few hours since this morning, since he came to the festival and joined the _fun_ by playing a role in a silly drama play, even though the _thought_ actually didn't occur to him at the beginning.

_Tetsuya already made a choice_ —his inner voice chirruped inside his mind. He knew that after the GoM's break up two years ago, it was bound to happen eventually. He just didn't expect it to come so soon. _Moreover, it's not just Tetsuya, apparently—_ it continued as Akashi's mismatched eyes caught Midorima's mop of green hair with a certain dark haired point guard from Shuutoku below the building at the school backyard, _kissing_.

Akashi narrowed his eyes at the provocative view. _One by one… everyone leaves to be with their special person—_ it still hadn't sat well with Akashi, the idea of someone else having so much control over _his_ family's feeling. Although he realized that it was probably only his possessiveness speaking, he just wasn't ready to admit it.

After all, he hadn't yet found that special person himself. Maybe, if Akashi had someone that he cared about more than he did the GoM, he could understand their feeling and let go of them more sincerely.

_But what kind of person that can live up to my expectation?_ —Akashi couldn't help asking himself. He even didn't have a standard for someone like that. Of course, that special person had to be someone that deserved his attention, like having special talent, but did it also decide something that his heart yearned?

" _Only one who demonstrates excellence in both academic and sports, no… in all areas, can be considered a member of the Akashi household."_

Akashi couldn't help remembering what was always told to him by his father whenever they had dinner together. He moved his hand to his heart.

_Will such quality holder be a kind of person that I long for as well?_

"Sei-chan," Mibuchi's voice was registered in Akashi's mind, calling his name with concern latched in the tone. Akashi didn't acknowledge it by answering; only tilting his face aside slightly while his gaze seized Mibuchi's frowning expression. "Are you okay?"

Akashi was wondering why Mibuchi seemed worried. "Do I look not okay to you?" he raised his eyebrows at the taller, older, dark haired teen, not yet noticing that his hand still nested on his own chest.

"Well," Mibuchi looked away slightly after his eyes lingered briefly on Akashi's hand. "You've kind of been dazed since we came here…"

"I have?" Mibuchi nodded at the question. Akashi was rather taken aback. He didn't realize that he could look dazed at all before. It seemed that he was out of it more than he had expected. Then he noticed his own position and let go of his chest.

_No wonder Reo caught it…_

"I guess… I still haven't grasped the concept of my old friends leaving me behind. It's actually strange because I believed from the bottom of my heart that they would always be around me. It was… too much expectation, apparently… and kind of a blow to my _pride_ that I was wrong about it."

Akashi turned away from Mibuchi to look beyond the glass window again, more staring at the blue sky and the white clouds now rather than looking down at the yard ( _or my own hand_ —his mind supplied accommodatingly). He didn't need more proofs of seeing his friend's… intercourse ( _yeah right_ , as if that wasn't an understatement).

"I'm rarely wrong, but once I am… it's huge," he couldn't help adding. Part of him felt disgusted that he admitted defeat, but _that_ _part_ of him was one of the causes of the GoM's break up.

" _In this world, winning is everything. Winners are right and losers are wrong…"_

Akashi felt his left eye throb slightly at the remembrance of _his_ awakening. He closed his eyes to suppress it, chanting to himself that he couldn't be more wrong about _his_ ideology. He had long since decided that he'd rather not depend on _the other him_ for the matter of his heart, or else… he would feel the same pain he didn't want to experience ever again after _he_ showed up and ruined his GoM family. Once was enough.

Mibuchi was silent at Akashi's extraordinary explanation. Well, he looked mystified for once, but Akashi preferred that he didn't comment on anything while he was mulling over the ideas of himself finding someone special like the other GoM members. He didn't know what kind of person that he wanted, but… if that person could understand him… that would be very nice.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Aomine felt sick.

Alright, he felt like he wanted to puke. He had himself to blame for that because he ate like a black hole sucking in those yakisoba without thinking that his stomach couldn't really handle the black pepper _spice_ and of course, the monstrous amount. As much as he liked eating, he wasn't Kagami for one. Two, it was impossible to down 25 portions worth of boxed black pepper yakisoba straight without stopping, Kagami or _not_.

"Ugh…" Now Aomine could only groan painfully as he knelt down at the corner of the building, resting his forehead against the creamy colored wall while willing his stomach to stop churning like there had been a group of wild elephants running rampant inside it.

"I-I'm so sorry, Aomine-san. Are-are you alright?" Sakurai sounded very worried. He didn't seem to know what to do to help Aomine, so he bit his thumb nail and fidgeted. Not that Aomine could see his face at that moment, but Sakurai must have looked like about to cry any time now.

Aomine didn't know why Sakurai apologized, but it would be helpful if he just fucked off and left him alone in this embarrassing state. "Go away, Ryou…!" he managed to growl, or at least that was what he thought he was doing, if he disregarded the light whimper (as if he could admit that out loud).

"Eh, I-I'm so sorry! B-but, you l-look really pale…! I don't think I s-should leave you alone, Aomine-san…!"

Despite his timid tone, Sakurai still could be stubborn apparently. Aomine sent the light-brown haired boy a death glare, causing him to squeak in reaction while spurting a string of apologizes again which aggravating Aomine more than reassuring him. "Shut up!"

"Ye-yes! I'm so sorry!" the shorter boy closed his eyes shut and held his head, as if expecting a hit or such. Aomine was back to cover his mouth since the shouting caused his stomach to stir even more. He really needed to throw up to fix this. He grunted some more, thumping his forehead on the wall weakly, trying hard not to give in to temptation.

"A-Aomine-san…" a few minutes later, another wave of anxious calling filled the space between them. Aomine cursed under his breath.

"Just-… just go, Ryou, leave me alone…" Aomine didn't have more energy to yell as he let out a long suffering sigh. He even was unwilling to face the other boy directly. It was humiliating to be seen like this. Heck, he didn't realize until a moment before he got sick that he received such a large bluster to his ego and heart.

After all, Aomine had Kise's sole attention for almost three years, and yet he was too blind to see it. Now, when he thought he could reciprocate, the other teen was no longer looking at him. Kise got fed up chasing after him all the time without gaining his desirable response, and now he already shift that attention to someone else; someone that immediately returned the interest just as much, if not more. Aomine guessed that he had himself again responsible for this turn of event.

_I'm such an idiot—_ Aomine felt like berating himself for his own stupidity. But seriously, it wasn't like him to drown himself in self-pity and self-loathing. Why did he feel this depressed? Why did his heart ache so much over this?

Before long, Aomine noticed that Sakurai wasn't with him anymore while he was thinking, or more like moping, but he wouldn't divulge that to anyone else if they ever dared to ask him. Aomine scoffed lightly. Good. At least Sakurai could read the mood.

Though, his relief didn't hold for too long because a few minutes later, someone touched his shoulder. Aomine tensed involuntarily, but the hand that stayed latching on his shoulder shook a little bit and- "Aomine-san, h-here…" Sakurai's quivering voice followed soon after, added by the sight of a can of lemon soda being offered to Aomine.

Aomine relaxed slightly before scowling at Sakurai. "You… what—?"

"F-forgive me, but I heard that-that drinking soda could e-ease the queasiness in your stomach, so… Ah! I'm so sorry for being so nosy, but please accept this so you can feel better!"

Aomine didn't know if he should be pissed off for his request to be left alone being ignored or grateful for the utmost care and attention. Seriously, Sakurai was an enigma. Even after how he yelled at the shorter boy, Sakurai still came back for him. Was he secretly a masochist? Anyway, why was he still apologizing to Aomine again?

Though, seeing how frantic and earnest Sakurai seemed to be, Aomine couldn't help yielding to his genuine proffer to help him for once. He let out a deep sigh before receiving the yellow colored soda can. "Thanks…" he muttered lowly, turning his body around to sit and lean his back against the wall.

Sakurai gave him a partially comforting smile. "No problem, Aomine-san," he said rather shyly.

Aomine grunted as he opened the can in his hand before he downed half of the content straightly, only stopping once to blurb and enjoy a moment of brain-freeze, and then continued drinking until the last drop of lemony soda was gone. He heaved a rather relieved sigh when he put down the empty can on the ground after that.

"I-I'm sorry, are you f-feeling better?" Sakurai asked slowly and timorously, sounding hopeful as well.

"Aah," Aomine still closed his eyes as he responded. Truthfully, after the momentary brain-freeze earlier, his stomach wasn't roiling anymore. Well, he was still a bit squeamish, but it wasn't as bad as two minutes ago before he drank.

"Thank god…"

Aomine opened one of his eyes lazily, just in time to catch a very nice, honest pleased smile adorning Sakurai's feature. He couldn't help blinking as an imaginary golden star hit him on the forehead. "Y-you… seriously…!" He face-palmed now, absolutely not knowing why he felt utterly defeated so suddenly. His cheeks felt rather warm too….

"E-eh? I'm so sorry! Did I do something wrong?" Sakurai instantly panicked, his face paling slightly.

"No, sheesh…! Why are you apologizing? Now I feel like a fool because it looks like you did it without realizing it…!" Aomine was annoyed, but judging from Sakurai's bewildered expression, he realized that the guy was a natural.

_Damn…!_ —another face-palm for Aomine's slumped form. Seriously, he must have been in a very low spirit that he began to feel a tug on his heart string from these small gestures that he usually ignored or plainly didn't notice.

"I'm-… I'm sorry if I'm being me-meddlesome, A-Aomine-san…!" Now Sakurai looked like he was about to burst out crying again. Jeez, what a troublesome guy!

"No, that's why; why are you apologizing, seriously?! You haven't done anything worth apologizing, so stop at once or I'll get really mad!" Aomine raised his voice again.

"Hiii! S-sorry! Please forgive me!" Sakurai went frigid and raised his volume as well in apologizing while covering his head _again_. "Ah! I'm sorry I'm apologizing!" now he just realized that he was still doing that and hurriedly covered his mouth.

"Ryou… you really should fix that low self-esteem of yours," Aomine heaved out another long suffering sigh. "Whatever demeaning thing you think about yourself, it's not true. You're a good guy, you know."

"Eh?" Sakurai opened his eyes in a surprise and looked upward uneasily at Aomine who just felt mildly irritated for having to comfort the shorter teen instead of the other way around. After all, he was the one feeling in turmoil at this moment, and not Sakurai. Ah, but Sakurai had been dealing with his problem since he was a kid, so he guessed… in a way Sakurai was in constant turmoil too.

"So smile more. You have a nice smile," Aomine slapped Sakurai's back rather hard and the teen yelped in reaction, but right after that he smiled that nice blooming smile of his, and Aomine had to look away to avoid feeling awkward.

"Thank god… am I useful for you, Aomine-san?" Sakurai asked with glazed eyes, looking very buoyant.

"Fool, friend doesn't use each other like that. But that's right, you make me feel better, so… thanks," Aomine couldn't help but smile a little as well, although his feeling was still complicated about a certain blond model. Well, at least he didn't feel like barfing again, so that counted for something, right?

Still, Aomine didn't expect to see the blush on Sakurai's face, though. "I-it-it's nothing… I'm glad that I can h-help even if it's just for a-a little bit… ah, sorry for being too confident, ah! I apologized again…!"

Well, Sakurai's frenzied behavior was kind of amusing right then, so Aomine snorted. "You really are an odd ball," he shook his head after that.

"S-sorry… ah! Again…I apologized…" Sakurai seemed dispirited as he let out a resigned exhale. Aomine just tried hard not to laugh at that.

A few minutes of comfortable silence later, Sakurai opened his mouth again shyly. "S-so… Aomine-san, what happened?"

Aomine grimaced. "Damn you…! Just after I thought you were a good guy too! Don't start nagging like Satsuki, Ryou!" Yep, now he was annoyed as hell.

"I-I'm so sorry! Bu-but Momoi-san was worried and she a-asked me to look after you for the rest of the day! I-I couldn't refuse, so…!" tears already gathered on Sakurai's eyes now.

_So that's what this is all about?!_ —Aomine twitched at that. Seriously, he had to start reading people better from now on. He scowled and in a moment of rage, he caught Sakurai in a headlock and proceeded to give the shorter boy a knuckle attack.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Sakurai shrieked in pain at the rough treatment before protesting. "W-what are you doing, Aomine-san~?!" he sobbed lightly as he tried to nurse his abused top.

"I was trying to regain my trust in humanity and you mercilessly stomped on it, you…!" Aomine felt a bit sadistic as he continued attacking the smaller boy.

"Uwaaa!" Sakurai wailed again, struggling to free himself from Aomine's clutch futilely because Aomine had him trapped between his arms securely. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sooo sorryyy!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Suddenly an affronted cry was heard from a distance. Well, it wasn't too far from Aomine and Sakurai's spot, but it was far-flung enough for both of them not to realize that someone had been watching their interaction. Though, Aomine had to admit that the high tenor voice was quite familiar and boy was he surprised when Kise's horrified face greeted his sight as he turned to look at the owner of that voice.

"W-w-what… what are you guys doing in broad day light like this…?!—the blonde's voice was latched with disbelief and mortification as he spoke.

"Ki—?!" Aomine even hadn't been able to finish calling his name in shock when the blond sent him a sharp, teary glare; as if he was accusing Aomine of… of doing _something_ that really disappointed… or more like _hurt_ him.

"Aomine-chi, you—big idioooooooot!" then Kise abruptly ran away while howling insult at Aomine's intelligence.

Aomine was still pretty stunned, speechlessly staring at the dramatic retreat, while Sakurai was copiously apologizing to _everyone_ on the earth surface as well as frantically trying to explain that they weren't doing anything suspicious or illegal at all.

"Aomine-san!" Sakurai's cry of panicky effectively snapped Aomine back from his stupefied condition to reality and he looked at Sakurai in a loss of word. "Please after Kise-san! He misunderstands something very serious!"

As if at the cue, an image of Aomine hugging Sakurai from behind in Kise's perspective fleeted through Aomine's overworked mind. "Shiiiiiiiiiiit!" and he cussed loudly before proceeding to chase after the blond before it was too late to fix the obvious misapprehension.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kagami and Kuroko got out of the classroom in a strange mood. Well, for Kagami, at least, he felt really tongue-tied. He wasn't sure about Kuroko, but after their first deep kiss and Kagami asking Kuroko to stay beside him while Kuroko saying 'yes' without a doubt, they had been silent all the time.

Alright, maybe it was just because Kagami didn't have anything to talk about after confirming his own feeling that _yeah_ , he wanted to try to date Kuroko. After all, he liked Kuroko more than anyone at this moment, but he wasn't sure if it was 'love' or just a simple 'like'.

"Hey, guys! How do you think about our planetarium?" One of the girls of class 2B that was in charge of the class stand greeted them with sparkly eyes, as if she was hoping for something out of the two basketball players that had just emerged from inside.

"It is amazing, Tanaka-san," Kuroko responded to the dark haired girl in pony tail evenly.

"Right? It's a shame that Andromeda isn't there, but even just like this, many people praised it!" the other girl with lighter hair beside Tanaka, Amami, chirped happily.

"Yes, I was surprised too that the people in our class are very creative," Kuroko nodded, a small smile making its way on his face.

Kagami was silent when those girls spoke animatedly with Kuroko. He stood on the sideline and by the time the three seemed to notice that he wasn't talking, Tanaka involuntarily chuckled.

"What?" Kagami couldn't help being disturbed that she laughed just because she saw his face. Was she mocking him?

"No, well… I didn't think that Kagami-kun would be so overwhelmed after getting out of the planetarium," she giggled at that.

"I wasn't!" Kagami denied. "I was just…" he looked the other way, starting to feel self-conscious because he was actually silent only because he wanted to observe Kuroko and the girls' interaction.

"Eeeh, no way, Kagami-kun! Are you jealous because we only spoke with Kuroko-kun?" Amami covered her mouth modestly and Kagami felt a bead of sweat trickling down his face at that.

"Who the hell would be jealous of something like that!?" Kagami couldn't help shouting, his face hot in embarrassment that it must have been bright red.

Both Amami and Tanaka just laughed heartily before the pony tailed girl approached him and patted his lower back lightly. "Just kidding, Kagami-kun; sheesh… you're very funny and cute. No wonder people in our class tease you all the time and you never notice! How gullible!" She shook her head and Kagami scowled.

"Shut up!"

"Here!"

Suddenly, a couple pieces of paper were thrust into his chest by Tanaka. "Huh?" Kagami eyed the pink and blue papers suspiciously, furrowing slightly.

"Tickets for an entertainment in Class 1C, I heard they had a very interesting _game_ for 'you guys'," Amami answered the silent question from her spot. As Kagami looked upward to the lighter haired girl, Kuroko's face suddenly entered his field of vision and he couldn't help yelping in a start.

"You—Kuroko! Since when have you been there?!" he pointed boisterously at the shorter boy. He thought Kuroko was still beside Amami a moment before!

"Just now," Kuroko shrugged, tilting his head aside to look straightly into Kagami's flustered face, a glint of delight in his sky-blue eyes even though he was still expressionless. "That game seems interesting. Shall we play, Kagami-kun?"

Kagami felt his face heating up again at the serene look Kuroko gave him when he offered his hand. The two girls behind him were visibly eager to witness the sweet scene before them and even though Kagami wanted to be discreet of their current status, he didn't want to reject Kuroko's offer in front of other people either.

_Besides, weren't the people in our class the ones that pressured us to be an item in the first place?_ —Kagami was actually exasperated at the fact that he and Kuroko played right into their plan, but he had to admit that he was kind of grateful too, because they didn't see him and Kuroko as if they were freaks for being 'together' even though they were both males. _Japanese people surely have open mind for something like this._

In America, a smallest hint of being 'different' from normal would lead into bullying, especially by teenagers who were stupid and hormonal. Not that Kagami would let him get bullied because he wasn't an easy target. He was too strong to get bullied. Well, some people suspected he had special relationship with Tatsuya back then, but it only stayed a gossip because no one dared enough to confront him about it.

It wasn't true, though. Tatsuya and he were just brothers and if anyone mocked that bond, Kagami just had to kick their asses for it. Well, in Japan things were rather different. Although he was pretty sure that there were still plenty people frowning upon gay relationship, especially out there in society, for some reason people in his school seemed more amused (and downright excited) at such topic. Maybe it was the girls… he didn't know, but they seemed fond of something like this.

"Well? What do you say, Kagami-kun? Stop making us wait in suspense!" Tanaka seemed to get impatient because Kagami was silent for too long. Amami nodded fervently, supporting her friend's complaint.

"Ah, jeez! Alright! Let's get going and play, damn it!" Kagami, face still burning tomato red, grabbed Kuroko's offered hand and immediately pulled him to walk away from the squealing girls that shouted 'have fun!' while waving enthusiastically at the two departing boys.

Kuroko just chuckled from behind as Kagami cursed those 'crazy fan girls' under his breath, still pretty embarrassed because his and Kuroko's relationship would become the school hot topic for the time being.

Arriving at the intended class at the first floor, Kagami scrunched his nose at the big banner plastered above the door. _'Test your Love! Feel how much you know about your sweetheart!'_

"The hell—!?" before Kagami even finished his exclamation, two guys dressed like magician in contrast colors of white and black, completed with their classic high hats, emerged from inside and immediately rushed over to them as soon as they noticed them.

"Welcome, dear customers!" the brown haired one put up a wide sales' smile as he greeted.

"Ooh! I see! We have another unusual pair this time!" the black haired one looked at Kagami and Kuroko's joined hands pointedly before he too, smiled, before he pushed both Kagami and Kuroko to enter their class, despite Kagami's shock and broken protest at the instant assumption.

"We have pairs just like you inside! This is a _competition_ to 'know' your partner better, see! Now, who will become the 'seeker'?" the brunet stared at both Kagami and Kuroko expectantly while Kagami could only look at him dumbfounded.

Kuroko seemed to assess the situation quite quickly before he raised his hand. "I will," he said, to Kagami's utter wonder.

"Hey, what's going on here?" Kagami raised his voice in alarm because he had no idea what they were getting themselves into all of sudden.

"It is alright, Kagami-kun. Trust me. I will find you for sure," Kuroko gave him a determined gaze. Kagami could only 'believe' in his partner's sincerity as he looked into those amazing crystal like irises looking at him like 'he' was Kuroko's world.

"I really don't get it, but… what should I do?" Kagami sighed in resignation as he shifted his eyes from Kuroko to the two guys who just received the tickets from him and grinned at him widely.

"Oh all you have to do is standing on our stage and be silent," the black haired boy smirked conspiratorially and Kagami couldn't help feeling a bad omen approaching seeing those guys' expressions.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Shin-chan, Shin-chan, Shin-chaaan~!" Takao pulled at the hem of Midorima's uniform persistently, causing the green haired bespectacled boy to grunt in indignation.

"What is it, Takao?" Midorima sent Takao a heated glare. Well, he looked like he was pissed, but Takao knew better since Midorima was a hard case of _tsundere_. He bet the guy was just embarrassed because Takao was clinging to him the entire time they walked together.

"I still want to play some more! Let's head back inside the building! I saw something interesting earlier!" Takao smiled brightly sending Midorima his best puppy eyes knowing fully that he would get what he wanted despite Midorima's remonstration.

"What? No. I'm already tired, Takao!" Midorima refused.

"Eeeeh? But it's really interesting! Come on! Just this once!" Takao pouted slightly.

"Wasn't that what you said when we played 'shooting game' earlier? That's the _last_!" Midorima huffed, fixing the position of his glasses that slipped down slightly. His face seemed a bit flushed and he looked really adorable even though the frown marred his gorgeous face.

_Well, Shin-chan's still hot even if he's frowning!_ —Takao's mind supplied gleefully.

"Well, yeah, but… I just want to spend more time together with Shin-chan here," Takao admitted while scratching his cheek, feeling rather embarrassed himself, especially after seeing Midorima's endearing expression just then. Midorima's face visibly turned a darker shade of crimson at this point.

"W-wha—?! You-… you're so unbelievable! F-fine then, just this once and I mean it, Takao! This is the last time!" Midorima raised his voice slightly, but his conflicted look was signaling that he thought about the same thing as Takao, so the shorter boy just grinned happily, hugged him while saying thank you, and then grabbed Midorima's hand as he pulled the boy to run to the direction of the Seirin main building once again.

Entering the building, Takao immediately brought Midorima to a certain class where two boys with contrast magician outfits greeted them and brought them inside after Takao paid for the tickets. "He'll be the seeker!" Takao immediately shouted and pointed at Midorima who apparently was still in horror after reading the obscene banner above the class door.

Yep, Takao had been eyeing this particular game since the first time he saw it when he was escorting Midorima to find Kagami and Kuroko earlier. Midorima had refused to look at the 'idiotic' games (he claimed) and passed the class without a second glance before, and now he had to follow through the activity because they had already entered it and bought the tickets.

"TAKAO!" Yah, but it didn't stop Midorima from yelling at Takao for tricking him into playing this embarrassing game. Ah, Takao would have fun hearing all the things Midorima would say to him later, after he _found_ him on stage, of course.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Let's try this one, Atsushi," Himuro pointed at the class with a big banner of ridiculous love-game above its door.

Murasakibara stared absentmindedly at the door while munching a potato chip after being dragged away from his heaven in Class 3C. Himuro was adamant that they walked around to burn all the food he had eaten and something like a game should require quite amount of energy to complete.

_Troublesome…_ —Murasakibara was actually lazy to do something like this, but Himuro looked at him in much anticipation. And honestly, he didn't want to disappoint the older guy especially if he wanted to get in Himuro's good grace for his advantage later. People said he was slow, but he just appeared to be, really. When Murasakibara was motivated enough to do something (for a price, obviously), he could be quite fast on the uptake.

Murasakibara smiled slightly after mulling over the pros and cons. "Sure, but what do I get after playing this game, Muro-chin?" he set his hopeful gaze at Himuro, who flushed slightly for some reason. Of course Murasakibara knew why he did. He was confusing the dark haired teen with some of his 'true' words earlier, but Himuro seemed still unable to accept that Murasakibara had _that kind_ of interest. His partner was indeed very cute while he was flustered like that.

"You will have fun, of course," Himuro said, chuckling lightly even though there was a tinge of edginess in his tone.

"No, I mean from Muro-chin. Will you give me a reward after the game?" Murasakibara bargained using his formidable chip: innocence, both in his face and voice.

Himuro looked rather surprised for a moment before he huffed out an amused laugh. "Can't be helped, then. Alright. One request from you as a reward after completing this game. But you'll play the hard part," he pointed at the 'seeker' word on the banner and Murasakibara's eyebrow twitched slightly at how 'tiring' the word seemed. Well, he didn't know what the game was, but he would impress Himuro if he could get what he wanted later.

"Kay~," Murasakibara answered rather wearily, but Himuro's chuckle and beautiful smile could make up for it.

A pair of ridiculously contrast magicians greeted them when Murasakibara and Himuro entered and Murasakibara paid for the tickets before Himuro and he then heard the explanation of what kind of game it was. By the time the two finished, Murasakibara found himself smirking slightly while a pinkish flush colored Himuro's cheeks.

Apparently 'seeker' didn't really need much of energy, since he could still spot Himuro from miles away in the middle of the crowd (his height was totally an advantage he would use), especially if Himuro would be on stage for that matter. Well, the curtain that would conceal most of Himuro's feature except his hand might be bothersome, but he had confidence he could 'recognize' it was Himuro if he caught him later.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Mibuchi and Akashi walked together in silence down the stairs. The atmosphere was quite heavy in Mibuchi's mind. Well, it had something to do with Akashi's strange mood earlier. Sheesh, the air around them really wasn't good for his skin.

_But… what did cause Akashi to look depressed? It's weird…_ —Mibuchi couldn't help feeling pressured. Certainly, it wasn't his fault, was it? Akashi decided on his own that he was going on stage for the drama before. Surely, Mibuchi didn't follow him into the changing room because he didn't want to get caught in whatever crazy idea Akashi had in store for meddling with the class play. And Mibuchi was _glad_ he didn't, because he seriously didn't want to come up on stage for whatever reason.

Though, Mibuchi never expected that Akashi himself would agree to play in _it_. He must have been trying to prove something in by doing that. But what? As for about his friends leaving his side, in _what way_ did he mean by that? They already parted since they graduated from middle school, of course they wouldn't be together anymore. Still, what Akashi told him about not being 'around' Akashi earlier bugged Mibuchi. Actually what kind of relationship did Akashi share with his ex-teammates?

However, enduring this odd, puzzling situation any longer was out of options as well because Mibuchi was positive he would go mad if he didn't do something to lighten the mood.

_Why isn't Kotarou here to do that? It will be so much easier if he's here, damn it!_ —Mibuchi couldn't help letting out a frustrated sigh. _Anything will be fine, if I can find something to distract Akashi from his brooding mood_ —Mibuchi stopped dead in his track as his eyes caught an interesting bright banner above the door of a certain class on his right.

Instantly, an idea flashed like a light bulb. "Sei-chan!" he reached and grabbed Akashi's shoulder. The shorter teen stopped and turned his head around at him, raising his eyebrows. "Let's play a game! We're already in the school festival. We should enjoy the time more before going home! This thing seems interesting," he pointed at the class while smiling faintly.

Akashi looked upward and read the banner. "Test your love…?" he frowned. "Reo, are you trying to tell me something or to imply _anything_?" he threw a suspicious gaze at Mibuchi and he flushed.

"No, duh! Sei-chan, it's a game! We'll just play it to have fun, kay?" Mibuchi sweated bullets as Akashi still looked at him nonsensically.

"I have a policy not to date my teammates, Reo," Akashi said as he turned around once again, apparently not interested in playing the game.

"I know that! It's not like that, Sei-chan! We are teammates, right? It's not bad to know your teammates better," Mibuchi was desperate. Akashi was very strange to actually consider such thing from him. Akashi was supposed to be a 'know it all' type, so it was bizarre for him to suspect Mibuchi having romantic feeling for him despite all his previous escapades and efforts not to be Akashi's favorite like Hayama.

Still, for some reason, Akashi still confided in him about things that he shouldn't have to know about. Maybe that had something to do with him chosen as the vice captain for Rakuzan basketball club, but still….

Akashi paused and was still silent for a few more seconds, seeming to consider something before he nodded. "I see your point. Maybe if I know you more…" He turned to look at the class. "What kind of game is it anyway?"

Mibuchi grinned. "Let's get inside and we'll know after that," Mibuchi slid the door open and two guys in contrast magician suit greeted them cheerily.

"Wow, today we have so many unusual couple!" the brunet chuckled at the perplexed Mibuchi and a passive looking Akashi.

"Tickets for a pair are 200 yen!" the black haired boy offered the tickets to Mibuchi and he instinctively reached for his pocket for money, but Akashi beat him to it by paying the brunet.

"Who will be the seeker?" The brunet asked the red haired teen in front of him and Akashi tilted his head up slightly in wonder.

"Seeker?" both Mibuchi and Akashi didn't know what the brunet was talking about, so the black haired one explained the game rules and the roles of each participant.

"Oh," Mibuchi blinked. "That's… interesting…"

"Then you'll be the seeker, Reo," Akashi suggested.

"Eh?" Mibuchi whipped his head to face Akashi in surprise.

"It will be too easy for me to do that with my 'Emperor Eye'. You on the other hand…" Akashi smirked slightly. Mibuchi really didn't like that expression. "Show your worth to me, Reo," he ordered and Mibuchi sighed in defeat despite the girly protest he was sure to spout out if only Akashi wasn't there.

"Fine," he hung his head low as the younger boys in front of them jovially led Mibuchi and Akashi to their respective posts.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kise was running away. Yeah, well, he knew it was kind of a coward's thing to do, but he couldn't deal with it at that moment. After all, he had just seen Aomine holding someone else and he couldn't believe that his heart was burnt with jealousy in a level that was still scorching despite his own decision not to get affected by Aomine's stupidity ever again.

Even though Kise was supposed to already give up on the tanned ace, he couldn't deny that he also still held a strong feeling for him. He wasn't hopeful anymore, but seeing Aomine being intimate with anyone else could still _hurt_ him. Kise was a foolish man, indeed.

" _Wait, Kise!"_

Even though he could hear and feel that Aomine was running after him, for some reason, Kise didn't want to stop. If he stopped now, he would cry even harder and he didn't want to cry because of Aomine anymore. He had had enough crying because of that insensitive jerk. Besides, Aomine would consider him weak if he gave in. So, he kept running... more… faster. He wouldn't get caught. Let Aomine be the one chasing his back this time.

" _Kise! Cut the crap out already! Stop running away from me!"_

Aomine's shout was getting louder, an indication that he was running faster than Kise. If this continued, Kise would get caught. He didn't want to!

Kise turned at the junction and went into an alley between the two tall buildings of the Seirin High before he found a back door and then slipped inside the building, blending in with the crowds so he could escape from his chaser.

" _Fuck!"_

It seemed that Kise was successful in his run. Aomine apparently lost sight of him after he hid at the turn-over just beside the rest room. Now, he could see Aomine running past the hall he hid and disappeared between the throng of bodies up ahead. Kise panted while bending, getting pretty tired.

"Aomine-chi, you-idiot…!" he scowled heatedly, his tears gathering in his eyes as he recalled the image before. The other boy that Aomine was holding earlier was one of Aomine's teammates. If he wasn't wrong, that guy was called Sakurai or something.

Kise sniffled as he felt the hot liquid dripped on his cheeks. _Those two looks… very close._ _Are they together? But Aomine-chi just told me not to give up on him!_ _What's going on?!_ —he tried to rub away his tears from his face with the back of his hand. _Is Aomine-chi just kidding? Is he playing me?_

"Ki-chan?"

Kise snapped and looked upward to be met with a pair of pink eyes, staring at him with concern. "M-Momoi-chi…"

"Ki-chan, why are you crying?" Momoi sounded very worried now as she approached him.

"Uh… no, it's nothing…" but even when he said that, his tears dripped even more and before long he couldn't help but start sobbing.

"Ah… what happened, Ki-chan?" Momoi tried to comfort him by touching his arm and stroking it lightly. "Are you hurt? Do you feel sick?"

"N-no… but… _sniffs_ Aomine-chi is an idiooooot!" and Kise bawled right there and then, not caring anymore that he acted like a girl (or a child) despite his look and reputation, since he knew Momoi wouldn't judge him. After all, the pink haired girl was one of the few people that realized Kise's not exactly platonic feelings for Aomine.

"Sheesh… what did he do this time?" Momoi just sighed as she fussed over Kise until he stopped crying so much.

**#**

"So, what happened?" Momoi asked after handing her handkerchief to Kise who was still sniffling slightly, but at least his tears had stopped flowing like a broken dam. They were sitting at the table in one of the cafes inside the building. This time it was a normal café on the first floor.

"Aomine-chi is being stupid," Kise muttered dispiritedly, snorting into the handkerchief.

"That never changes, Ki-chan. I believe I already told you to give it up. He will always be selfish, that ego-maniac, self-centered over-tanned bastard," Momoi didn't feel sorry at all for badmouthing her useless childhood friend because it was true. Well, Aomine had his own good qualities, but he also had so many flaws like the other human being, genius or not, that shadowed his good points almost in every corner.

"But… he said he started to understand my feeling, Momoi-chi, and he… he said he hated it that I was giving up on him," Kise sobbed slightly again. "I wanted to believe his words so badly… and I thought I would stop trying to give up, but then he went and disappeared and when I found him again… he was hugging someone eeelse~!" and he continued weeping by burying his face in his crossed arms on the table.

Momoi sighed deeply at that. Well, knowing that Aomine noticed Kise's feeling in the first place was startling, but Momoi also knew that Aomine always had a soft spot for Kise even though both didn't seem to realize it. In a way, Aomine probably felt closer to Kise than to any other GoM, but that could be because of Kise's outgoing personality. She guessed, it wasn't that hard to fall for Kise's loveable character, especially if Aomine completely acknowledged that his 'chemistry' with Kuroko wouldn't get him anywhere. Furthermore, even though Aomine was reluctant to give Kuroko up to anyone else, he did accepted Kagami as Kuroko's _true_ light. That couldn't be easy, but Kise's presence made it possible since he quite distracted Aomine as well.

"Ki-chan, I do think you have a chance to win Dai-chan's heart, you know," Momoi decided to give it a shot. She hated seeing Kise crying because of her useless childhood friend, but she also wanted both Aomine and Kise to be happy together.

"Whatever. I don't care anymore. I'm tired of crying because of him!" Kise didn't lift his face as he whined, his voice muffled by the material of his uniform.

"Don't say that. I know I told you once to give up on him, but that before he let Tetsu-kun go to be with Kagamin. Now that Dai-chan has no one to give that affection, I think he will point it toward you," she smiled warmly, trying to convince the blond boy that looked very depressed.

"Yeah right. He seems completely 'comfortable' getting lovey-dovey with that Sakurai-kun," Kise grimaced, sounding very sarcastic, upset and jealous, but it was normal for someone that was in love with a guy like Aomine.

"Wait, Sakurai-kun?" Momoi just realized that and blinked repeatedly for a few seconds before she burst out laughing. "No way! Sakurai-kun is terrified of Dai-chan! Besides, Dai-chan hates his timid personality! You must have misunderstood something, Ki-chan!" and she continued cackling at the ridiculous idea.

"But it's true! He was hugging that guy when I found them!" Kise protested, pouting heavily.

"Ah… you must have mistaken his knuckle attack for hugging, Ki-chan. It's normal occurrence in Touou. Dai-chan loves bullying Sakurai-kun because he doesn't fight back," Momoi shook her head, her eyes damp from the mirthful tears. "Ah, I know! Why don't we give a test to Dai-chan?" she suddenly got an idea after remembering something.

"A test…?" Kise looked confused.

"Yeah, see if Dai-chan actually has feelings for you too, Ki-chan." Momoi winked and Kise just stared thunderstruck at her. "There's this very interesting game in Class 1C. I bet he will confess to you in that game." She was very confident with this plan. After all, she knew Aomine's character better than anyone else.

"A game?" Kise widened his eyes at that, looking very surprised.

"Yep. It's called, _'Know your sweetheart more'_ game!" Now Momoi grinned widely, full of spirit, before she rose and grabbed Kise's hand to stand up, following her. "Come on! You go first and I'll find Dai-chan for you!" then she pulled him to leave the café after leaving money on the table for the two cups of coffee that she and Kise drank earlier.

Arriving on their destination, Kise seemed bewildered as he stared at the banner and Momoi's grin widened as she called for a pair of guys in contrast magician suit to buy the tickets for Kise.

"My friend here is depressed because he thinks his sweetheart doesn't have the same feeling as him and I want to prove him wrong," Momoi whispered conspiratorially with the two guys as Kise was still preoccupied with the banner. "Make sure he hears the confession, kay?" she gave the two guys a teasing look and they blushed cutely at that.

"Leave it to us, Miss! He will get out of this place as a happy person!" the black haired guy promised.

"Wonderful. Now, I have his sweetheart to look for. Take care of this guy for me in the meantime, please?" she bat her eyelashes prettily at them and they turned into a puddle of goo on the floor at her sexiness.

"Our customers today are all amazing!" She could hear the brunet exclaim as she left to find the over-tanned buffoon that dare to make Kise cry again even after they parted school.

_Sheesh… you so owe me big time, Dai-chan!_ —Momoi swore to drag Aomine by the ear if he didn't grant her once in a life time request to make Kise, a guy that had loved him no matter how thoughtless he was, happy.

**End of Chapter 15**

**Tbc...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty hard. I had no idea making a lot of couple interact in one chapter will take so much time and so many words to write. And I even get to the main game. Crap. I forgot to add Furihata's scene! Ah, but never mind. He will show up in next chapter anyway… with the start of the love game! *grins* Well, what do you think? Eh… I'm not active enough in writing? Well, like I said at the top, life happens, readers, please be patient. Jaa, see you again in next chapter!


	16. The 'Love' Game (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get more interesting for Kagami and Kuroko as the Love Game starts and as it continues... it gets more complicated for Akashi and Furihata.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos and comment in previous chapter! Now enjoy this one!  
>  **Disclaimer: Knb © Tadatoshi Fujimaki**  
>  **Warning:** _still the same like the previous one *lol*, oh some fluff and sappy stuffs XD_

  
**Chapter 16:** _**The 'Love' Game (Part 2)** _   


* * *

Furihata was headed to the student council office when someone called his name from the other side of the corridor.

"Wait, Furihata!"

Furihata stopped and turned around, tilting his head aside slightly as he found one of the student council members, Ryuugu Reishi, running to his direction. "What's wrong, Ryuu?" he asked just after the dark haired boy caught up to him.

"Sorry for troubling you even though your shift is already over. Err… we need an extra hand for a student council's project," Ryuugu said, exhaling loudly and scratching his cheeks slightly. "Aozaki hurt his leg when he was helping his class move property box. His ankle was sprained, so now he can't stand."

"Eh, is he alright?" Furihata frowned, rather concerned at the unfortunate news about another member of the student council in his year, along with Fukuda and Ryuugu.

"Well, he's out of commission for the day," Ryuugu sighed despondently. "Can you help substitute him for the rest of his shift? This is supposed to be his last task for today…" He gazed at Furihata with pleading look.

Furihata gave him a small smile. "Sure. What can I do to help?" He wasn't doing anything at the moment anyway. Besides, he had had enough craziness with the drama earlier during his break, despite only watching. At least some works would get his mind off of that problem.

"Thank you!" Ryuugu smiled brightly while seizing Furihata's shoulders in appreciative gesture. "Actually, it's a student council project to enliven a certain game, proposed by the first year…" He fished out a note from his pocket before reading it aloud. "Class 1C, the _'Know your Sweetheart more!'_ game," he finished.

Furihata scrunched his nose up at that. "What's with the tasteless naming sense?" he couldn't help nitpicking ridiculously.

Ryuugu rolled his eyes in reaction. "Tell me about it. Anyway, you and Akari-san will play that game. The president said at least student council should participate in the game and win to set a good example…" he trailed off after that.

"I get it. I know how eccentric our president is," Furihata sighed in defeat. Indeed, the student council president of Seirin High School, Arihara Takumi, was a unique individual. He was a good looking guy with athletic body despite not attending any sport club, and he was smart to boot. But, his personality was rather… _unusual_. For one, he loved watching strange games being played by his subordinates. Furihata didn't know what more peculiar traits the guy had, but he sure as hell didn't want to disappoint such strange individual since he wouldn't know what Arihara would do to punish him.

"So… what should I do in this game?" Furihata asked unsuspectingly. He knew the game was bound to get weird, but he didn't think it would endanger his life, judging from the name. It would probably be embarrassing, though.

"Ah, see… basically, it's sort of like hide and seek game, but the seeker –meaning you, Furihata— will have to find your hidden partner –Akari-san- amongst the other hidden people on stage. There will be at least six or seven people hidden for each game. You have to find Akari-san among them, with only one clue: the hand of your partner. They will be hiding behind a sheet of curtain inside the booths, one person for each booth, and only their hand will be visible for you to examine and to determine whether it's your partner or not. The seeker is allowed to talk, but the hidden partners aren't. It's quite challenging since the percentage of the success in finding your right partner by pure chance is approximately only 14 to 16%. Unless you know them well… like if there's peculiar trait in their hand that can increase the probability, it's nearly impossible to win." Ryuugu looked slightly keyed up as he explained.

"Eeh? So it will be very difficult for me to win it, right? I don't really know Akari-san that well to guess that it is her just by looking at her hand," Furihata pouted. He had to admit that the game was interesting despite the incredulous naming sense and the uncanny rules. After all, it could really test someone's knowledge about their partner.

Ryuugu smirked at that. "That's why President Arihara has an idea. Since it's probably impossible for anyone to win this, only the participants from student council will be given more clues in secret." His eyes glinted mischievously.

"Huh?" Furihata blinked, dumbfounded. "But that will be unfair for the other participants," he puckered his brow then, quite displeased with the arrangement because that was cheating. Furihata might be a little bit of a coward, but he was no cheater. He was a sportive basketball player after all.

"It's alright. Some of us also disagreed at first, but President Arihara argued that it was for the sake of popularizing the game itself. Without any winning at all, the game will lose customers because the challenge is too hard. To balance the interest, it's necessary to set up some exemption. Since student council has to help, it becomes our job to be those exemptions," Ryuugu seemed to quote the president's words, along with mimicking his gesture.

Furihata was still slightly reluctant despite the reasonable argument, but because it was a job for student council, he didn't have a choice. "Alright, I'll do it… for the sake of enlivening the program," he agreed. He didn't think it would do too much damage if no one knew, right?

 _Right—_ his mind supplied, without knowing that this event would lead into an irreparable mess for Furihata's life later…

"Alright, here's the list of things you should know about Akari-san, especially her complexion and her natural nail color. Ah, and don't forget to say something romantic to announce your feelings for her before you call her name," Ryuugu grinned.

"EH?!" Furihata snapped, widening his eyes, totally shocked. "Wait a minute! What is that?! Romantic feeling?!"

"Well yeah, since it's a game for a couple, you know. Of course you have to do it _at least_ like that," Ryuugu huffed, looking at Furihata incongruously, probably for asking such a dumb question.

"But! I and Akari-san aren't like that!" Furihata protested, gradually feeling a blush dusting his heated cheeks. He thought it was just a test for best friends or partners!

"Silly, read the title of the game! It's _'Know your Sweetheart more!'_ game after all," Ryuugu snickered as Furihata gaped.

 _Oh damn! What have I landed myself into now?!_ —Furihata couldn't help face palming as he sighed dolefully afterwards, totally blaming his own stupidity for accepting the task so gullibly. He should have known better since it was set up by the bizarre student council president! _Sheesh, President Arihara is absolutely an oddball!_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Alright! Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to our 1C's amazing love _'Know you Sweetheart more!'_ game!" the MCs, both boys with contrast magician costumes of black and white greeted all the participants with loud cheery voice. "We're your MCs for today event! I'm Hazuki!" the white one tapped his chest in full spirit.

"And I'm Ryo," the black one bowed politely and serenely like a professional performer.

"We're going to entertain your day in full blast!" and then, both boys gave all the participants and the spectators their widest nice selling smile. Half the guys in the classroom cheered together with them while clapping their hands whilst the rest feigned their enthusiasm quite visibly.

Murasakibara actually yawned, looking quite bored. Midorima scowled, seeming annoyed. Mibuchi only smiled rather awkwardly and Kuroko deadpanned. Well, in Kuroko's case, even though he didn't really show it that much in his face, he was actually one of those excited guys because he felt challenged by this game. He wanted to test his own comprehension about Kagami and he was confident that he knew Kagami enough to find him despite with all the restriction.

"Now, we have quite a number of contestants here… let's see… fourteen people in total! Seven guys as seekers and seven other halves in hidden chambers! Let's cheer for all seekers to find their beloved sweethearts!" Hazuki, the white magician, let out a joyful shout after reading his card and the participants and spectators applauded more shrilly.

"This shift' contestants are quite peculiar, huh?" Ryo, the other MC with black magician clothes, commented more calmly and the white one immediately nodded eagerly.

"Yes! Why's that, do you think?" Hazuki inquired cryptically while the drumming sound of the background music created a dramatic effect as the suspense grew. "It's because more than half of the hidden partners behind the secret chambers are also guys!"

There was a popping noise, followed by surprised silence before the audiences started to laugh at the joke.

Well, they thought it was a joke. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Judging from the way Midorima and Mibuchi winced; their partners were most likely ones of those guys. Kuroko kept silent, since his partner, Kagami, was also a guy, and Murasakibara didn't seem to care.

"Huh? It seems that we're missing two participants here… where they could be, I wonder…" Ryo tilted his head slightly aside, making a gesture of counting the heads in the center of the classroom which had been decorated like a setting in variety show in television.

"Oh no! There will be two sweethearts without their beloved seekers in here?" Hazuki followed, sounding horror-struck, sad and dejected at the same time as the spectators booed at the terrible news.

"Sorry, we're late!"

There was a hard slam sound of a sliding door being opened so suddenly, and two people hastily barged inside the classroom, revealing Aomine and Furihata's frenzied faces. Both panted and sweated as they rushed their way to the middle of the room.

Kuroko and the other people inside raised their eyebrows in surprise at their sudden intrusion. Apparently both Aomine and Furihata were also participants of the game and had been running before arriving at the class. Momoi followed them inside in a more relaxed pace before sliding the door shut behind her, since the game was about to start for real.

"Oh! The participants are now complete!" Hazuki immediately cried out again in gusto the moment Aomine and Furihata stood in the center of attention and the room exploded once again in joyous delight. "Phew, you almost got disqualified there, gentlemen," he sniggered at Aomine who glared back at him impatiently and at Furihata who just chuckled sheepishly while mouthing an apology. "Now… we already explained the rule before you signed up for this game, but just in case, I will repeat it once again. You seekers only have one chance to pick your 'right' beloved partner from the many secret chambers. You can say anything you want before picking them, hopefully saying something nice and romantic to elate their hearts," he winked at the seekers who flushed slightly for various reasons except maybe Kuroko and Murasakibara, "But the ones in secret chamber will have to stay silent until their hands are grabbed and their names called before the curtain was uncovered. If the seeker picks the right partner, they can answer his feeling by accepting, but if he's wrong, then our dear- _dear_ seeker will become a laughing stock as a penalty." Now he smirked devilishly while the spectators doubled over at his funny explanation and the interesting prospect of the 'wrong' picking.

This would be hilarious indeed, and be quite a traumatic experience if they picked the wrong partner after spouting such cheesy lines to publicize their feelings. Ingenious… and totally mortifying! Who the hell came up with such idea, anyway?!

"Now I know why Takao insisted on selecting this game…" Midorima glowered heatedly. He seemed about to crack in embarrassment as he glared the secret chambers, a.k.a. the booths on the makeshift stage, quite grudgingly. His face was still in a dark shade of red, almost certainly thinking that partaking in this ridiculous game was completely preposterous.

"I am honestly surprised seeing you here, Midorima-kun," well, Kuroko couldn't help himself. After all, Midorima wasn't the type of person who would play this kind of game, but if it was Takao's scheme then… that was another story.

"This isn't my idea to pass my free time as well, Kuroko. Just shut up and let me think of how to kill Takao and get rid of his body without being caught by the police," Midorima growled murderously, absolutely incensed.

Kuroko felt bad for Takao since he would be at the receiving end of the green haired shooter's wrath, but Midorima was probably only overreacting again. He often did that. Moreover, he was a _tsundere_. He might want to secretly test his observational ability as well in this game despite his words. Kuroko moved his gaze to Mibuchi beside him. The older teen looked rather apprehensive for some reason.

"Are you alright, Mibuchi-san?" Kuroko inquired. At first Mibuchi didn't seem to hear him, but after he touched his arm, Mibuchi snapped back from his train of thought to reality and faced his way.

"Oh, hello, Kuroko-kun," the dark haired teen smiled slightly at him. "What's wrong?"

"That is my line, Mibuchi-san. You seem rather pale," Kuroko pointed out evenly. Mibuchi cringed.

"The pressure of not making an error in picking Sei-chan is… grinding on my conscience," the Rakuzan's basketball player caressed his chest hopelessly, apparently believing that he wouldn't get out of this game _alive_ if he made a mistake.

"Let's work hard together, then…" Kuroko almost felt sorry for the taller senior, but Mibuchi should have known better before agreeing to play this kind of game since his partner was Akashi Seijuurou. He wondered if the red haired teen forced Mibuchi to participate in the game to pass the time because Akashi was bored. Akashi seemed capable of doing something like this after all.

"Oi, Tetsu, you're playing this stupid game too?" A deep silky voice from behind Kuroko broadcasted his other old friend's presence around him. Aomine grunted in irritation as he glanced at the stage, grumbling some kind of curses under his breath. "So troublesome and tiring, what're Kise and Satsuki's thinking?" the tan ace complained some more, looking absolutely exasperated.

"Aomine-kun as well… Are you playing with Momoi-san as your partner?" Kuroko raised his eyebrows at him.

"Heck no. It's Kise," Aomine scoffed. "There's something complicated happening between me and that guy. It's got to be resolved today. I refuse to prolong this matter." He seemed determined. "But among such many hidden people… how the hell can I know who is who?" Now he scratched his head curtly, sounding completely frustrated.

"If you know Kise-kun as well as you think you do, you should not have any problem finding him, Aomine-kun," Kuroko lightly patted Aomine's back, supporting him full-heartedly. He didn't know what problem was going on between Kise and Aomine now, but if they could reconcile in this game… "I will root for you guys." He nodded positively.

"Thanks, Tetsu…" Aomine gave him a tentative smile. Kuroko was rather surprised. That Aomine might actually be feeling grateful to him for once.

"Kuroko," another participant greeted the bluenet and he turned around to find Furihata smiling awkwardly at him.

"Furihata-kun, you take a part in this game too." It wasn't a question since Kuroko only stated the obvious and Furihata nodded in confirmation.

"Yep, student council's project," the brunet elaborated, looking apologetic. "I can't tell the detail, but it's a task, alright…" he whispered the last part conspiratorially.

"A set up game, huh?" Kuroko instantly guessed flatly and Furihata freaked out.

"H-how did you know that?!"

"Intuition," Kuroko deadpanned again and Furihata laughed nervously in rejoinder.

"As expected from the Seirin's shadow player… Please keep it a secret," he made Kuroko promise, but there was no harm in it, so why not? Besides, in Furihata's case it wouldn't be a serious confession, so it was alright, and because it was a set up, he would guess 100% right anyway.

"Alright-y then! Now… please contestant number 1, take a step forward and get on the stage!"

At the cue from the MCs, Kuroko glanced at the #1 tag on his chest and nodded. It was his time to go. "Wish me luck."

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Huh? Where's contestant number 1?" Both MCs seemed confused because no one came forward.

"I am right here."

"GYAAAAAH!" the brunet in white magician outfit, Hazuki, shrieked in shock as Kuroko suddenly appeared beside him. He frantically tried to hide himself behind the other MC, Ryo, who widened his eyes in apparent perplexity as well.

"My… we didn't see you there…" the raven in black magician suit laughed lightly, seeming to be nervous as he eyed Kuroko warily. "Since when have you been there?"

"Just now," Kuroko answered emphatically, not showing any expression. Well, he couldn't wait to start looking for Kagami, so he was rather impatient, but it wasn't necessary to show the MCs and the audiences that, was it?

"Ahaha, sorry for suddenly yelping…" Hazuki chuckled nervously, looking slightly repentant with a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek before repositioning himself beside Ryo, talking directly to Kuroko. "Ahem, well then, please introduce yourself to the audiences before starting to look for your partner!" he instructed.

"Alright," Kuroko took the microphone from Hazuki's hand and turned around to face the spectators and the other participants. "I am Kuroko Tetsuya, Seirin High Class 2B, seat number 23. I will try my best to find my partner." He bowed politely before giving the microphone back to Hazuki.

"What to say… He's a very _polite_ seeker, huh?" Ryo smiled awkwardly, sweating slightly as well.

"As expected of our senior!" Hazuki grinned while nodding approvingly.

Kuroko then turned once again to face the secret chambers. He set a somber expression, focusing on the hands which were visible from the holes of the curtain. He started from chamber number 1 from the right side, slowly and carefully watching the hand before he turned around to face the MCs again.

"Am I allowed to touch the hand to get a better look and feel?" Kuroko asked bluntly and the MCs shared a look at each other before nodding affirmatively.

"Sure you can!" Hazuki chirped.

"But only the hand, alright?" and Ryo smiled while winking coolly.

"That will be sufficient," Kuroko nodded back before once again focusing on the hand offered in front of him.

 _Judging from the height… but, all the positions of the holes are even, so I can't see from there. Complexion… this one is too pale._ —Kuroko decided before he moved to the next one. _This one has the right complexion, but I'm sure Kagami's hand doesn't form this way. It's too small for a guy's hand—_ he abandoned the second and moved once again to the third.

This time, it was a guy's hand. Kuroko was sure because it was big and rather tanned, just like Kagami's. Beside, the nails were blunt. But just to make sure, Kuroko touched the hand slightly. It was warm and the palm was calloused. This guy must have played sport using his hand, like basketball. But, Midorima's partner was probably Takao… and the guy was playing basketball too. Kuroko couldn't just decide that it was Kagami just from that.

Kuroko released the hand before moving to the fourth chamber. Just like the previous hand, this was also bigger than Kuroko's hand. It was also calloused and there were some kind of cut mark on the index finger. While Kuroko touched the hand, he felt electricity running through his body as he 'recalled' the memory of that contact.

 _Ah… this is it…_ —Kuroko's heart already decided before his mind could follow. He didn't know why, but he just knew that it was Kagami's hand. The feeling was right. It was warmer than any hand that Kuroko had ever touched in his life. He remembered how that hand had always been there, offered to him, ready to pull him or catch him when he was down; that gentle hand which caressed his skin and tangled in his hair when he and Kagami kissed…

"The first time we met… I thought that you were amazing," Kuroko started as the spectators gasped in response of his sudden speech after the long silence since he started the game. The hand in his grasp twitched a little. Kuroko smiled slightly. "I wasn't expecting much when I entered Seirin, but when I saw your broad back, I just couldn't stray my sight from you."

"Wow, he's starting; he's starting!"

Kuroko could hear the MC, Hazuki, whispered keenly and judging from the murmur of the spectators, he guessed they were as well. "At first, I thought it was just a genuine curiosity because you looked so intense like a wild tiger, but I realized it wasn't the case when I saw you play basketball for the first time. That night, my curiosity turned into an instant admiration."

Some of the girls in the room giggled while the guys kept their silence. Some Seirin peers were probably surprised that Kuroko was talking about someone that played basketball. There was no female basketball club in Seirin, so it was obvious that Kuroko was talking about a _guy_ in Seirin basketball club.

"I decided to be your shadow because of it. Even though at first I thought anyone in your caliber would do, I did choose you because I felt that respect from how much love and devotion you have for basketball. After that, you surprised me because you were much more than what I estimated, and by the time we defeated Kaijou in the practice match, my respect for you had turned into something else." Kuroko closed his eyes, recalling the turning point of his life.

"At that time… after Kise-kun's warning about your potential which rivals the Generation of Miracle and how it was most likely that you would drift apart from the other Seirin basketball members... our teammates, especially _me_ … you told me that you needed me to be number one in Japan. You have no idea how much salvation you bestowed upon me with those words… how bright the light you showed me just by standing there, extending your hand to me. At that time, my heart soared to the sky I felt so glad and thankful that you became my light."

Kuroko paused slightly to take a deep breath before resuming his confession while tightening his hold on the other hand. "Many things happened after that. There was also a time when I thought I had lost your trust because I wasn't strong enough. I was so scared of my own incompetence which would bring you down that I doubted myself. I was very anxious whether or not I was worth of being your partner, and yet you… you believed in me. You have always had faith in me, from the beginning, despite my flaw and weakness. Once again, you pulled me out from the darkness that surrounded me. You did not only become my light that shone on _the shadow_ … you pulled me into the light as well with your confidence in me. I… I have no idea how I feel towards you after that. I just… I _adore_ you; I want to always be with you, walking side by side, on and off the court…

"I realize fully that I am not yet quite familiar with the nature of this sentiment I have for you. I am not sure how to name it, but I do know that being by your side makes me happy and content, seeing your smile warms my heart and lifts my spirit and… my feeling is so overwhelming now that I am prepared to give you my all."

Kuroko opened his eyes, resolution and conviction reflected in the light gleaming in his aquamarine irises. "That's why, Kagami-kun… I want you to accept this feeling of mine, all of it."

There was a brief stunned silence in the room before-

"Oooooh! Kuroko-san has confessed and called the name of his hidden partner!" Hazuki cried out, looking absolutely marvelous with comical poignant tears sliding down his cheeks. "That was so amazing! Such heartfelt confession! Oh my God! I'm actually crying!"

"Indeed… that was very beautiful, Kuroko-san," Ryo commented next while trying to rub away his slightly pooling tears.

"W-well… since Kuroko-san already called the name, it's the time to reveal if he has confessed to the right person!" Hazuki shouted.

"Music!" Ryo clicked his fingers and the drumming sound started again. The audiences seemed moved and thrilled at the same time as the sound kept droning on until approximately a minute. And then, the curtain was slid off.

Kuroko widened his eyes slightly and everyone else gasped as inside the chamber, Kagami was covering his steaming blushing face with his other hand, while the hand in Kuroko's stayed there, gripping hard, almost bordering into painful. Seeing how conflicted and embarrassed Kagami seemed to be, Kuroko threw him a small delighted smile. "Kagami-kun, I found you," he whispered softly, trying to convey everything with his expression and words even though he really wasn't good at showing emotion.

Kagami was still silent, his body slightly trembling. Apparently, he didn't know what to say, or he was too besieged to say something, _anything_ , or… it could be because he didn't trust his voice not to stutter or falter if he dared to speak.

"…diot…"

"Huh?" Kuroko heard a small muffled grunt from him, though… soft and quiet, and rather shaky. He even didn't catch what Kagami was saying.

"…idiot…!" the red head repeated more clearly. "How could you say such embarrassing thing with such calm expression…?! You-you're just so…!" Kagami couldn't seem to continue his whispered line as he suddenly pulled Kuroko closer and caught his smaller body in an unyielding embrace.

"Ka-… Kagami-kun…?" Kuroko was very surprised at the unexpected affectionate gesture. He didn't anticipate that Kagami could be so gallant and forward, even _in public eyes_ , especially about their _somewhat_ controversial relationship.

Kagami still hadn't resumed his words as Kuroko felt the hold around his body tighten slightly. After that, he could faintly hear the taller red head mumble, "I accept it… whether it's your good or bad qualities, the things you love and you hate… I want to have everything of you, Kuroko."

Kuroko actually flushed, his face warming at the sincere acceptance. Although Kagami's voice quavered slightly, it still sounded very melodious for Kuroko's pinking ears. "I am glad…" he sighed contently while returning the hug with the both of his arms looping around Kagami's side while his hands clenched at the _gakuran_ material on Kagami's back.

This very nice and wonderful atmosphere could go on and further if only there was no those strangled squealing noises from the girls and Hazuki. Kagami seemed to instantly realize that they had audiences. He hurriedly pulled back with mortified look on his madly blushing face. "Wha—?!"

"Hyaaaa! That's so superbly awesome! Oh, gosh! You two are so very romantic!" Hazuki apparently couldn't hold back his commentary anymore and once again squeaked happily like a girl, rivaling the other females who were sighing and moaning heartily with dazed blushing expression, inside the class room.

"Aww, so sweet!"

"You two are the best!"

"Aaah! You guys squeeze my heart!"

Kagami gaped, opening and closing his mouth unceremoniously at the torrent of embarrassing compliments thrown at both Kuroko and him as his face got redder and redder by the minute. He probably considered to getting himself buried somewhere and never coming out again, so he didn't have to deal with that shame for giving out too much free PDA.

"Oh, Hazuki; stop teasing the poor couple, will you? Kagami-san looks like he was about to pass out there," Ryo chuckled excessively as he shook his head, seeming totally amused. "Alright then! The first game by Kuroko Tetsuya and Kagami Taiga is done! They both won the challenge with full mark!"

Instantly, the room cheered and applauded for the couple. Kuroko tried to hide his pleased smile and Kagami literally covered his tomato-redface once again, apparently still very horrified that both Kuroko and him were publicly very official now.

Aomine, Midorima and Mibuchi looked extraordinarily astonished and Furihata's face was as red as Kagami's for some reason. It seemed that they didn't expect such bold confession from Kuroko. Well, Kuroko didn't blame them, since he rarely spoke with so much emotion. They were probably thinking like ' _who the hell is that?!'_ or _'that can't be Kuroko!'_ or something in those lines.

"Congrats, Kuroko-san and Kagami-san! Please wait for a bit because we have a special reward for you both!" Hazuki congratulated them with totally jolly grin.

"As if we'd stay here any longer! We're leaving!" Kagami yelled at the MCs heatedly, still blushing, probably both from embarrassment and exasperation, before he grabbed Kuroko's hand and then pulled him to run away together.

"Aww! And the couple run away to do more lovey-dovey things!" some girls actually shrieked in enthusiasm while the others giggled, the guys' sweat dropping.

"We're NOT doing something _that_!" Kagami squeaked as he and Kuroko continued absconding from the crowd.

"Way to go Kagami-san!"

"SHUT UUUP!"

Kuroko only laughed lightly as he followed Kagami's pace of running, tightening his hold on Kagami's hand self-assuredly. Really, he was so glad that he had met Kagami and he would definitely treasure these lovable moments they would experience together as not only best friends, but also lovers.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Ah-ah… it seems that we've been abandoned by our heroes now…" Hazuki sighed, shaking his head while shrugging.

"That's because you embarrassed the couple too much, right, Hazuki?" Ryo looked apologetically at the abandoned post where Kagami and Kuroko stood a moment before the two had decided to run.

"Aww, what are you saying? They are just too adorable for their own good! It would be a total waste not to tease them!" Hazuki cackled seeming about to cry from the funny moment. "Ah, well… we can always deliver their reward later anyway. Let's just move to the second contestant!" he then turned to face the rest of the seekers expectantly.

"Alright! Seeker #2, please come up!" Ryo urged, but then he blinked as he set his eyes on the other participants. "Huh? Oh… right. Two of the participants haven't gotten their tags. Well, since there are only #2 and #5 left of the tags, we'll call the name directly. Alright, participant number 2, Furihata Kouki-san, please come up!" he continued with a smile.

"Eh, it's me?!" Furihata squeaked, pointing at himself and broadening his eyes in shock. "B-but, I'm late…" he stuttered slightly, voicing his protest.

"Ah, yes, but you see, the student council enlisted your name and your partner up pretty early for this season' game, so… and the number tag is decided based on that! Come on, up, up! Don't make your sweetheart wait for too long!" Hazuki approached Furihata before offering his hand to him. Furihata flushed slightly, pretty embarrassed and awkward as he took the hand and was led to the stage.

"Now, just like Kuroko-san earlier, please introduce yourself to our guests and the other participants," Ryo handed him the microphone.

"Uh…" Furihata cleared his throat, feeling very nervous so suddenly. He had memorized the hints pretty well, so he shouldn't fret about it too much, but it still scared the crap out of him standing before so many eyes, focusing on him only (and maybe his partner, but the girl was practically hidden for god's sake!), of course he would feel very self conscious about it. "M-my name is Furihata Kouki, Seirin Class 2D, seat number 12. I'll do my best!" he bowed to the audience restlessly and some of them chuckled at his jumpiness.

"Yeah, since Kagami-san has fled, we are short one person in the secret chamber. So, to make it fair we have to fill the empty chamber so the chance won't be less for the later participants. Who will volunteer?" Ryo looked at the audiences expectantly and someone immediately raised her hand.

"Me. Please pick me," Momoi smiled with her magenta eyes sparkling in hope.

"Alright! The beautiful lady with pink hair! Please come up here and we will shuffle the order of the people inside the secret chambers!" Hazuki shouted again in full spirit as Momoi giggled when she made a beeline to the stage.

A few minutes later, all the people in secret chambers were done shambled. Furihata stood frozen in front of the chambers, not exactly knowing from where to start. Well, he could take an example from Kuroko earlier, but maybe he would reverse the order.

 _Let's see… point number one of Akari-san's complexion… pale and fair. Her hand form is rather small, but bigger than most of girls because she is sporty, the captain of female lacrosse team. Her grip should be strong, but since she can't move, that can't be taken into consideration. Holding the lacrosse stick will make her hand calloused slightly and… oh—_ while thinking about all the things he memorized from the note he had received earlier from Ryuugu, Furihata immediately found the match of those characteristics in the first hand he had landed his eyes into.

It was from the booth number 7, the closest to the back door of the classroom that was slightly opened. The hand that perched through the curtain was rather small. Compared to Furihata's own, it was almost the same in size, but this was even smaller, so he guessed this must have been a girl's hand. The skin was paler than Furihata's, but it wasn't so pale like a girl's that didn't play sport. Besides, the nail color was right, a natural pink, moreover they were tended well. This must have been the right answer. It was Akari-san's.

Deciding to go with it, Furihata looked upward at the sheet of dark curtain in front of him. This time, he should say something nice and poignant like Kuroko did earlier, but he would pass on the embarrassing part.

_Yosh, let's do it!_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Akashi was currently bored.

Well, he thought that he could distract himself with thinking about what he would give his teammates in Rakuzan for the next training menu while waiting for Mibuchi's turn. He was quite surprised when he met familiar faces like Kagami, Takao, Himuro and Kise earlier when they were preparing to go inside the chambers. He was also rather perturbed that Kuroko could be so outright with his feelings earlier, since the bluenet was usually pretty reserved for things like… well, _feelings_.

Now, though, he didn't think that the second participant would say anything worth listening to, since he was that Furihata Kouki, the wimp he had encountered in student council office earlier today. Well, he was smaller than Akashi, so he considered the brunet alright. Although Furihata was obviously scared of him, that guy managed to defy him despite his fear. It was actually surprising.

 _Huh? Then he's not as wimpy as I thought he was_ —Akashi mused, starting to mull over it further. Besides, the way Furihata trembled when he touched him was rather interesting… alright, it was _cute_ even Akashi had to admit that. Akashi was quite fond of small animals, like kittens for example.

Thinking about Furihata and small kittens in the same line brought slightly disturbing imagination to Akashi's mind. Furihata with brown cat ears and tail… okay, that was adorable. Akashi couldn't help smirking slightly before he realized what he was thinking and snapped. _Shoot. What was that about?_ —he was quite taken aback and bothered by the alien feeling. He didn't understand why the image just fleeted through his brain.

 _This must have been because of this festival. This atmosphere makes me mushy, it's disgusting!_ —Akashi huffed slightly, furrowing his brow in confusion. This had to stop now, before he could envision further useless thing.

" _The first time I saw you, it was a shock to me."_

 _Huh?_ —Akashi blinked once. Why did he hear Furihata's voice so close to his…?

" _I've only watched you from afar before that first direct encounter, and I was pretty sure that I wasn't even registered in your line of sight."_

Akashi was speechless now, staring at the curtain hard as if he would have been able to see through it if he had kept at it for a certain amount of time. But alas, his Emperor Eye ability wasn't like that. So he could only fixate his gaze on the curtain, wondering why he thought Furihata was speaking to him directly. After all, he could be talking to the girl beside his chamber.

" _It was just coincidence, but since then, I couldn't get you out of my mind. I kept remembering how pretty your hair was despite the strange color and your eyes… they captivated me."_

 _Wait, is he talking about our first meeting in the Winter Cup opening ceremony?_ —Akashi was more surprised that Akashi himself still remembered about that event. Why did he even recall it? Furihata at that time was just accidentally involved in his meeting with the other GoM members and he asked the brunet to leave, before the situation went downhill because Kagami obnoxiously and rudely interrupted the meeting as well so suddenly.

 _At some point, I must have scared this guy very much with that scissors stunt, huh…?_ —Now Akashi could feel a tiny-weenie of guilt worming its way into his heart. He didn't know why he even felt that way. He didn't regret his action back than because Kagami deserved it. Besides, he had predicted that the taller red head would dodge it just fine. Yet, somehow, realizing that he had probably traumatized Furihata bothered him slightly.

" _I know your all accomplishments and I think you are an incredibly amazing person, so I feel rather intimidated that I suddenly thought that I want to you more on personal level."_

Akashi widened his eyes slightly hearing that. _He wants to know me on… personal level?_

" _I know I might not be up to your standard, and this is probably very rude of me to confess despite my limited knowledge about you, but… I really do want to know you better. Even though it's just a little bit, I want to be closer to you… as a person as a… 'friend', though you probably guessed that I want more than that."_

Akashi heard the light sheepish chuckle from the boy beyond the curtain. Furihata was pretty timid in choosing his words despite the obvious adoration in his tone. Did he really think of Akashi like that? Did Furihata seriously want to have some kind of relationship with him, Akashi Seijuurou?

 _Despite all that fear and uncertainty?_ —Akashi had a hard time believing that. After all, he clearly saw how Furihata recoiled in fright just by being in the same vicinity with him. Anyway, why did Akashi keep thinking that Furihata was talking to him again? It couldn't be him. There was just no way…

" _That's why; even though you'll end up turning me down, I want you to know my feeling. Even though you can't return it, I only hope that you will accept it, Aka—"_

Akashi's heart skipped a beat when there was a breeze of wind, fluttering the curtain slightly, creating a narrow gap and giving him a peak of what was behind the cover. With his golden orb, he caught Furihata's wide eyes, staring directly into his own.

"—shi-san…?"

The curtain cut their eye contact once again and Akashi couldn't help widening his eyes, very surprised because Furihata called his name.

_Wait, a- why did he call my name?!_

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

"Eh…?" Furihata froze in spot. Just now… did he see golden eye…?

" _Aka…shi-san…?"_

 _Holy CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!_ —Furihata instantly panicked upon recalling that he had called the demonic captain's name in conditioned reflex upon seeing the one of a kind colored eye.

"Oooh! What was that just now? Did Furihata-san call the name of his sweetheart?!" Hazuki announced and collective murmur of surprised gasps filled the room.

"Just now, who did he call again?" Mibuchi seemed dumbfounded, sweating bullets.

"Akashi…!?" Midorima looked scandalized, his glasses slipped off on his nose.

"Oh my…" Murasakibara actually raised his eyebrows at that. While Aomine dropped his jaw literally, gawking.

 _Oh my God, oh My God, oh My FREAKING GOD! What… what did just happen? Did I really call for Akashi-san's name?!_ —Furihata could only gawp with wide petrified eyes, still frozen in place while his brain was trying to make sense of what was going on. He didn't know how he could mistake Akashi's hand for a girl's, and worse… he just realized that he was unconsciously thinking about Akashi when he was retelling the mushy things written by Aozaki to confess to Akari as part of the set up game. After all, it was kind of similar how the things went in that paper and his meeting with the GoM captain. Furihata didn't expect that he was actually facing the _real_ Akashi there! He didn't know!

_What's going to happen to me?!_

Man, it was obvious that Furihata was in a Colossus Titan* trouble.

**End of Chapter 16**

**Tbc…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hahaha… I can't help myself with that last line *lol* Colossus Titan… *lol* If you're familiar with the term, it's inspired by Shingeki no Kyojin. It's just a lame joke (Izuki, oh Izuki), please ignore it *LOL*  
> Sorry about that *still chuckling after laughing some more*. Well, so this is chapter 16. I hope you enjoy reading it. Sorry for stretching this story so much. There will be part 3 for the Love Game since there are still Aomine-Kise, Midorin-Takao and Mukkun-Himuro left. What will happen to Mibuchi, you ask? It's a secret *evil grin* Alright, guys! Feedback time! Come on, I've been pretty depressed because of KnB chapter 226... and some of my readers actually left me! *cries* Have I lost my touch in making my stories interesting? I need some motivation here! I don't feel like continuing if you don't bother reading! *sobs* (still distressed seeing how dropped the reviews are in the other stories and haven't had time to read chapter 227).


	17. The 'Love' Game (Part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now it's the time for the side pairing to shine...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke © Tadatoshi Fujimaki**  
>  **Warning:** _lots of absurdities, language, oOC-ness, shounen ai, unbeta-ed, etc…_
> 
> I… seriously overestimate myself too much… (|||-︵-;) I know, I told you guys that I'd post something for KagaKuro day, and I thought I could finish this chapter yesterday so I could post the KagaKuro story today, but it's actually impossible because it took me so freaking LONG to finish this chapter (-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩_-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩-̩̩̩) (don't forget the checking thing… it takes so much time it's ridiculous!) I'm sorry… because I really want to update this story first no matter what! (ᗒᗣᗕ)՞  
> Ahem, well… so please do and enjoy this update first. I hope I still have enough time to make and post the KagaKuro story that I want to make to celebrate KagaKuro day…

  
**Chapter 17:** _**The Love Game (Part 3)** _   


* * *

For the first time in his life, Akashi Seijuurou was in dilemma.

No, really… Akashi was a very rational and composed person. He was smart and calculative, so there was hardly anything that could confuse or surprise him. Truthfully, even though he was aware that he was the subject of admiration and adoration from a lot of people since he was a toddler (for more reasons than one), _never_ had he expected to receive an exceedingly public love confession from a very _male_ person. Furthermore, that _guy_ was a guy he barely knew, an ordinary teenager with average social status and standard appearance.

Well, everyone had to admit that Furihata Kouki didn't possess anything special that could remotely make Akashi Seijuurou look at his direction. Let's face it. Everything about the brunet was totally typical and ordinary. There was just no way that Akashi would have any interest in knowing that kind of individual in more personal level _normally_ , judging from Akashi's character. And yet…

" _I really do want to know you better. Even though it's just a little bit, I want to be closer to you… as a person, as a… 'friend', though you probably already guessed that I want more than that."_

Akashi couldn't help raising his hand to cover his mouth with the back of his palm. For some reason he felt warm when he remembered the brunet's words. He didn't anticipate that those lines were directed to him. People tended to keep their distance after getting a glimpse of Akashi's cold personality, so why the hell did Furihata want to know him more instead?

 _I was so sure that he wasn't talking to me just then… but he did call my name earlier, so… did he mean everything he said?_ —Akashi mulled over the possibility that he was just being played. But, from the air around Furihata when he caught his gaze for a brief second earlier, he didn't seem to be kidding.

 _I can't stay silent forever here. A mistake or not, the game has to continue. Kouki really did call my name, so I at least has to answer, right?_ —Akashi knew he didn't have much time to ponder the pros and cons before he had to get out of the chamber and faced the confession head on, so he decided to play along and questioned Furihata's motive later.

**#**

"Ooh! Furihata-san already called out the name of his sweetheart!" Hazuki exclaimed.

"But… the name sounds rather different from the name of his right partner…" Ryo looked at his note and tilted his head aside slightly, looking mildly confused.

"Who cares?! He already called the name, so the person inside the secret chamber has to answer!" Hazuki cackled, apparently very pleased at the prospect of getting a good laugh if Furihata made a terrible mistake there.

"You… that's rather mean of you…" Ryo shook his head, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek as he stared at Hazuki's eagerness to embarrass his senior.

Meanwhile, Furihata was very pale. Cold sweat trickled down his face and body. He couldn't move even a finger and his wide eyes were glued on the curtain, the only thing that separated him from his impending doom.

 _I'm gonna die…! I'm gonna die! I'm sooo going to DIE by the hand of Akashi Seijuurou!_ —yeah, he was actually panicking on the inside because Furihata realized that he had made a fatal blunder by imagining about his encounter with Akashi before accidentally calling his name. Akashi wouldn't forgive him for embarrassing the proud emperor in front of other people. Furihata was DEAD!

Furihata flinched badly as the curtain fluttered slightly. _Oh no! Akashi is going to come out!_ —and he shut his eyes in fright hearing the sound of curtain gradually sliding open.

There was a brief silence in the room as everyone seemed to hold their breath waiting for Akashi's response. Even Furihata couldn't hear any movement, as if the time itself had been frozen before Akashi Seijuurou's gorgeous form…

 _Gaaah! Why the hell am I even thinking like that about Akashi in this enormously degrading situation?!_ —Furihata began to think that he had finally lost it. _My sanity, that is._

"Furihata Kouki," upon hearing Akashi's smooth, silky voice, Furihata jerked in response and-

"Yes!" –straightened his body as if he was being addressed by his superior in military institution.

"About what you said to me earlier… were you really serious?"

There was a hint of hesitation in Akashi's usually confident tone, something that Furihata never expected to hear, especially from Akashi. For some reason, none of the spectators commented on this. Even Ryo and Hazuki were quiet as if they tried to give time and space exclusively for Akashi and Furihata to communicate and discuss this absolutely outrageous episode.

Curiosity won over his fear as Furihata slowly opened his eyes to look at Akashi's expression. The red haired boy were eyeing him expectantly, silently demanding explanation in the most subtle way, and yet his red and golden orbs glinted dangerously, seeming to penetrate Furihata's head and see his soul through his dark chocolate spheres, seeking for something, answers… lies… Furihata wasn't exactly sure. But, Furihata also could see the glimmer in those beautiful mismatched orbs. Some _feelings_ lurked inside… yearning, hoping… even though he doubted that Akashi realized what he was showing, Furihata thought that Akashi in that moment was rather vulnerable. The _Absolute King_ actually looked very _human_ with all the insecurities of a teenage boy.

Furihata was totally stunned as the thought about all of those bizarre feelings were raging inside him. He was captivated, for him actually catching a glimpse of Akashi's side that probably had never surfaced, something that _no one_ had ever seen before. _And 'that Akashi', the mighty Rakuzan captain, is asking whether I was serious with my confession…_

Furihata knew he should just tell the truth that it was a mistake. That he had made an error by calling Akashi's name instead of Akari. But… he indeed thought about Akashi when he recited those cheesy lines. They were something that _might_ actually come out of Furihata's mouth if he wasn't so scared of Akashi's persona.

 _Maybe it's fate…—_ Furihata's insane part of the brain concluded. And usually, the lucid and the cautious part would immediately deny and push that nutty thought out of his mind, far and _far away_. However, at this jiffy, that rational part was numb because Akashi was still staring into his eyes, so deeply… so intensely such that Furihata decided he really wanted to take that chance.

"Yes," he said, the rare determination shining inside his usually fragile heart.

Akashi was silent with his eyes widening slightly as Hazuki started to make a groaning noise that sounded very-very keen. Ryo apparently tried to quiet him down, but it was futile because Hazuki looked very- and he meant _very_ excited about this turn of event.

"Oh, my goodness, you two~! Just say it outright already! Stop creating such suspense!" Hazuki grinned like a Cheshire cat and Furihata immediately gasped while blushing madly as he realized that many pairs of eyes were staring at him and Akashi on tenterhooks.

Akashi sent a warning glare at Hazuki and Ryo, but it worked for almost everyone in the area around Furihata and Akashi, who immediately stepped back in pale faces, sans Aomine and Midorima who stared at them ridiculously and Murasakibara who only looked mildly interested.

 _Oh my God! What did I just say to Akashi again?!_ —Furihata once again panicked, excessive cold sweat running down his face as he stared frightfully at the red haired beauty… _NO! Stop thinking about Akashi like that, you STUPID brain!_ —the more he tried to calm himself, the more he dreaded the outcome of his folly. Why did he even attempt to take such fatal risk in the first place again?

"… _were you really serious?"_

However, remembering Akashi's words and expression earlier… Furihata once again felt that he didn't want to disappoint the red head. He didn't know why, but if he turned tail here, he got a feeling that he would definitely regret it for the rest of his life.

 _Aaaaargh! I don't know anymore! If I'm going to die today, I'll die fighting till the last drop of my blood!_ —Furihata strived to forget his surrounding ( _read: his shame_ ) and to wake his audacity to open his damn mouth and call Akashi's name once again.

"Akashi- _kun_ ," surprisingly Furihata even changed the suffix of Akashi's name. Gone was the timid way and the _keigo_ , as he gazed upward at Akashi surely, and then he reached out his slightly sweaty, shaky hand to hold Akashi's idle one. "Being only a friend is alright. I… really do want to know more about you."

Akashi widened his eyes once again, this time visibly surprised, while Hazuki squealed hard. "Ooooh! It's here! Furihata-san once again asked for Akashi-san's approval!"

"B-but, the partner is wrong…!" Ryo apparently tried to take control of the situation, still… it was kind of futile because no one gave a damn about such detail at that moment.

Akashi was still silent for a few more seconds, most likely still contemplating his response before he seemed to make up his mind, and then softened his expression a little. "Alright then," he answered, to Furihata and everyone's surprise.

"Eh, Sei-chan?!" Mibuchi squawked, looking very shocked with eyes widening like a pair of saucers, but Akashi didn't seem to mind him and continued his words.

"It's been awhile since someone asked me for something like that. Being friends or more… Why don't we try, Kouki?" A gentle smile blossomed on Akashi's expression and Furihata couldn't help his face reddening again seeing such gorgeous look, totally spellbound.

"Akashi-kun…" Furihata was very blessed that he could see such view. He bet it was very rare… except to the GoM members, Akashi probably had never shown such tender smile to anyone else.

"Let's go, Kouki. It's probably our time to retreat and go to somewhere… quieter," Akashi pulled Furihata's hand and he was still too dazed to really pay attention to his surrounding as he moved closer to Akashi, not even realizing that there were some small stairs near his foot that he tripped on those.

"Ah!" But before Furihata could fall down, Akashi caught him in his hug and Furihata's face felt like furnace then, because he was so embarrassed for being totally clumsy even though he knew he should have made an impression for the attractive red head in front of him.

Akashi chuckled slightly. "Kouki is all thumbs, huh?"

"I-I'm sorry…" Furihata must have been flushing so much because he was so close with Akashi right now and the deafening squeals from the girls around him didn't help the situation despite Furihata's forced ignorance.

"W-wait a second!"

Suddenly, a uniformed girl came out from chamber number six, right beside Akashi's chamber earlier. She also had red hair, even though it wasn't as stunning as Akashi's. It looked more like dark brown reddish instead of red. Her eyes were also rather red, but apparently, she was wearing contacts in red color.

 _Geh! Akari-san?!_ —Furihata went rigid and paled as the girl pouted and pointed at him with index finger, while her other hand nestled on her waist.

"That guy over there is my partner," Akari said, protesting at Akashi who only stared her down while raising his eyebrows.

"Oh my God! The right partner suddenly came out to straighten the grave mistake and reclaim her man!" Hazuki shouted like a sport commentator and the audiences gasped in horror at the ruined lovely scene.

"Ah! Don't just suddenly come out like that! You're disturbing the awesome moment here!" Some of the annoyed fan girls yelled at the girl on the stage.

"Yeah! Yeah! Back off!"

"But he's supposed to be my partner!" Akari insisted, puckering her mouth even more, while further unsatisfied noises came from the spectators in retort.

"Whoa… this will become ugly very fast…!" Ryo seemed to pray that this wouldn't turn out to be a bloodshed. Cat-fight could be very terrifying after all.

 _W-what should I do?!_ —Now, Furihata panicked for real as he held his head and his eyes spun. Akashi appeared to notice his predicament and huffed.

"So, what will you say to that, Kouki? Which do you prefer, me or her?" then the red head asked and Furihata snapped out of his panic-induced reverie.

"Eh…?" Furihata turned to face Akashi now, very perplexed.

"Whom do you want to know more?" Akashi asked again calmly, not even trying to listen to the complaining girl in front of them. And… she was obviously glaring at him and Furihata expectantly.

"Wow… will this really get gory?" Murasakibara's eyes shone slightly at the prospect while he was still eagerly eating his rice cracker and Midorima looked like he was about to faint, apparently still shocked that Akashi actually accepted Furihata's confession. Aomine just dropped his jaw unceremoniously, probably his brain already broke before Akari even came out from the chamber.

"I…" Furihata stuttered, looking at Akashi and then at Akari consecutively and repeatedly before he decided to do the craziest thing in his life by shouting out his real desire. "I'm sorry, Akari-san! The one I was thinking about when I confessed earlier is Akashi-kun!"

"What?!" Akari hung her jaw open mouthed, gaping like a fish out of water while Akashi chuckled.

"Well said. You really got guts. I like it," Akashi complimented as he resumed his ministration, pulling Furihata to bring him away from that place. It seemed that he really wanted to be alone with Furihata so they could bond.

"I'm very sorry, Akari-san! I'll make it up to you later!" Furihata shouted again, while being dragged away by Akashi and before long, they already got out of the classroom and closed the door once again.

A second later, the scream from the spectators (especially the fan girls) inside, exploded in total delight at the retreating couple, surprising the other people that walked in front of the classroom. Even Furihata jumped at the deafening screech while Akashi just huffed out a small laugh at that.

"A-Akashi-kun…?" Furihata was once again amazed that Akashi even laughed.

"Well then, Kouki… where should we start our relationship from?" Akashi smirked mischievously at Furihata now and—

"Eh?" the brunet couldn't help sweating slightly in alarm hearing that inquiry.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Meanwhile, situation in the class 1C was…

Hazuki and Ryo were trying to calm the enraged girl that had been just dumped in front of the audience who sent some pitiful glances at her. "I can't believe he just ditched me like that! The worst!" She seemed about to get hysterical any time now, probably feeling very humiliated that Furihata chose a guy over her, so Mibuchi stepped up to help both the MCs quiet her down. And of course… to get the event on track again because the stunt Furihata and Akashi pulled just then successfully disrupted the progress of this game.

"You're right, Miss. I can't believe that my partner chose that wimpy kid over me as well," Mibuchi spoke, smiling apologetically at her and got her and the MCs attention in the process.

"Who…?" Akari looked upward at him and noticeably turned rather pink seeing his fine, good-looking face and form.

"Ah, pardon me. I'm Mibuchi Reo, Sei-chan's supposedly partner. Akari-san, right?" Mibuchi tilted his head aside slightly and she nodded slowly. "But well… I wasn't hopeful that my wonderful Sei-chan will accept my love-confession," he winked slightly at her, making Akari flush in a darker shed of red at his flirty nature. "Sheesh, he's such a handful captain. Please excuse his eccentric personality. If it's alright with you, I'll take Furihata-kun's place as your new partner," he offered then and Akari looked like almost exploding in total glee at the prospect of playing lovers with Mibuchi.

"Yes, yes, please!" She immediately countered fervently, even as far as grabbing Mibuchi's hand while her eyes sparkled.

 _Girls are easy as always_ —Mibuchi sweated inwardly at the abnormal change of attitude from the girl, feeling his body shuddering in innumerable Goosebumps, because he actually had to pair up with a girl even though he always preferred to play with cute guys. _Sei-chan, you completely owe me for this! I'm going to make you pay it up double!_ —he vowed on the inside, totally fired up, while on the outside, he only laughed sheepishly at Akari.

"O-oh… so it's alright with you guys to change partners and continue the game?" Ryo asked tentatively and Mibuchi turned to face the black suited MC with an easy smile.

"I'm perfectly fine. Besides, Sei-chan is not my real sweetheart. We're just _playing_ this game," he shrugged.

"Ah, Furihata-kun isn't my real sweetheart as well. He was just upsetting me for messing up the plan," Akari glanced shyly at Mibuchi and giggled. "I think Mibuchi-san is 1000 times better than Furihata-kun!" Now she acted like a complete fan girl to Mibuchi, making his body hair stand up to no end.

 _Please don't make her become one of those obsessed fans! I beg you, God! Please!_ —Mibuchi couldn't help praying while crying inwardly. Maybe he would make Akashi pay up thrice as much as the thing he owed Mibuchi later for putting him in this incongruous spot.

"W-well then… let's continue our ' _Know your Sweetheart More'_ game, then!" Hazuki clapped once, obviously trying to gain attention and resume their event, but then he suddenly snapped. "Ah! I forgot! We lost one of the sweethearts that should have stayed in the chamber again… what do we do now?"

"Just pick one from the audience!" Aomine scowled. Oh, look at that. It seemed that he already regained some composure after the gigantic shock earlier.

"Sheesh… I still can't believe that of all people, _Akashi_ would act that impulsively…!" Midorima shook his head, looking distraught as he pushed his glasses up his nose-bridge.

"Maa… once in awhile, it's nice seeing Aka-chin act like boys his age," Murasakibara smiled blissfully.

 _Miracles and their eccentric personality… you shouldn't really nitpick about how Sei-chan acts. It's like a pot calling a kettle black_ —Mibuchi twitched slightly, another bead of sweat trickled down his cheek as he heard them.

"Then, that lady with a pair of pigtails," Ryo pointed at one of the audience, a girl with long black hair wearing Seirin blazer. "Will you take the honor of being our guest to fill the empty chamber?" he smiled at her and she giggled.

"Alright, Ryo-kun," she said, completely agreeing before she came up on the stage to take Akashi's place in the chamber and then they shambled the order once again to prepare for the next seeker to play.

#

"Alright! There was a little arrest in the game earlier, but now we can finally move on!" Hazuki cried out ' _banzaaaai!_ ' on the background while dancing joyfully as Ryo spoke to the audience. "Well, since Furihata-san purposely made a mistake in his choice to call out his _sweetheart_ (such devious plan, indeed!), both Furihata-san and Akashi-san are disqualified. Though, we still congratulate them for successfully using this game to connect their *cough* _feelings_ ," he chuckled lightly, and the girls around immediately squealed once again in dreamy look, probably imagining what Akashi and Furihata were doing at this very minute.

"Now, time for the next contestant to come up!" Hazuki yapped while grinning, resting his arm around Ryo's shoulder and the background music played once again to root for the occasion. " _Saa_ , #4, please do look for your sweetheart!"

The colorful lights from the ceiling spun around for a moment before it zeroed on Midorima's green head. He huffed once, pushing his glasses up before padding forward.

"Oh! There you are! Please say your na—"

"Midorima Shintarou," Midorima immediately cut the expected line of the MC curtly, making Hazuki perspire in inelegant, paused smile. He didn't have time to waste because this was such a preposterous pastime. "Shuutoku High, class 2A, seat number 18." He harrumphed again before approaching the chambers slowly. "I really don't understand the importance of playing such nonsensical game. Even without saying much worthless sweet nothing, I believe that showing your feeling through your action is more important."

Midorima looked at the hands sticking out of the chambers one by one before he found the one which he was most familiar with, because that overactive hand always touched him unnecessarily, making skin contact here and there as if it tried to establish some kind of resilient connection with Midorima. He was also aware that the nonchalant and unfriendly vocabulary caused the spectators to look at him bizarrely, but he didn't really care.

 _Like hell I will embarrass myself by saying stupid cheesy things in public!_ —Midorima was annoyed that Takao even wanted him to participate in the game in the first place. He must have really fancied making fun of Midorima or something, seriously…!

"You're there aren't you, Takao? Does teasing me amuse you so much?" Midorima grimaced. "Testing my feelings for something I love and adore is an overkill, don't you think? You should have known, aren't you always beside me after all?"

"Ooh! Midorima-san suddenly called his sweetheart's name!" Hazuki announced in mock surprise, causing Midorima to flinch with the shameful way he had called Takao.

Midorima's scowl deepened slightly, his cheeks feeling rather hot. Then he hurriedly grasped the hand from the fifth chamber tightly. It was smaller than his own, but he knew the feel of that warm rather tan hand very well. Callused palm and fingers that helped him and assisted him in his flawless shooting. "Amongst everyone here… you know most about how I feel…! So stop joking around and come out here, idiot," he mumbled, feeling the air around him heating considerably as well. The hand in his hold trembled slightly before suddenly-

"Aaaah! Shin-chaaaan! Why are you so cuuuuuuute?!" Takao immediately launched himself at Midorima after yanking the curtain aside, and gave the green haired teen a bear, passionate hug that caused him to jump in shock and embarrassment.

"Ta-Ta-Takao!?" Midorima was very bewildered because Takao was fawning over him like a lunatic.

"Nnnh, that _tsundere_ side of you is very irresistible! I love you so much, Shin-chan!" Takao continued enthusiastically while Midorima was trying to push him away.

"L-Let go! You— _Bakao_! Stop treating me like a _dakimakura_ (1)!" Midorima protested harder, feeling his face burning because Takao had just confessed his love once again instead of him.

"Whoa… apparently the 'love' from the sweetheart has already surpassed the irrational level… Is there even necessary to give any test if the sweetheart doesn't even care whether his seeker sweet talks him or not?" Hazuki stared at them rather drearily.

"Hahaha, this type of couple is somehow also cute, huh?" Ryo laughed slightly, sounding nervous.

"Stop assuming things by yourself!" Of course Midorima tried to deny the allegation even though it was true that he and Takao were a couple. But he still wanted to keep that bit of information a secret. Well, Kise and Aomine might have seen them kiss, but after making sure that they would shut their trap, he believed that such sensitive information was only for him and Takao to know.

"Ahaha, but really, Shin-chan… I almost expected that you'd at least say that you liked me here… yet indeed, I'd prefer witnessing your _dere-dere_ (2) side in private rather than in front of everyone else. After all… it's _my special privilege_ , right?" Takao pulled Midorima's necktie down slightly and whispered quietly while looking upward at him before winking in suggestive expression. Midorima's face exploded in dark rosy color at the innuendo.

"TAKAO!"

Midorima almost choke the shorter, dark haired teen in mortification and rage before the collective squeals from the girls beat him to it. He and Takao were almost thrown down by the intensity of their scream. It was truly frightening, fan girls that were high from their desire in seeing some _'one on one'_ actions from their (instant) idols.

"As expected of the lovely girls…" Takao laughed as he slung his arm around Midorima's waist. "We're very popular, Shin-chan!"

"Shut up! And let go of me!" Midorima turned even redder at the realization that they were still very visible in public's eyes.

"Alright! Congrats on Midorima-san and Takao-san! They cleared the challenge just fine even without the mushy loving lines!" Hazuki gave both Midorima and Takao a thumb's up while the spectators guffawed in reaction at his joke.

"Now, Sin-chan… should we go somewhere else and take things further?" Takao pulled Midorima's arm down to murmur _seductively_ in his ear. Midorima squeaked when he felt there was something wet swiping at his earlobe.

"I don't want to, you IDIOT!" and he couldn't help exploding like a volcano while whacking Takao's head hard for going too far in his teasing. Then he walked away from the spotlight fuming, leaving the passing out Takao on stage with a visible bump on his head.

#

"Ahem, well… it seems that we don't lose our sweetheart this time…" Ryo stared at Takao who was still lying motionlessly on the stage with an awkward smile.

"What a violent and scary seeker… is Takao-san okay?" Hazuki spoke in undertone facing the microphone with a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek, his eyes wide in unease.

"He's completely alive, so hurry and finish this stupid game!" Midorima hissed at the both MCs. His face was still very red, probably from anger, but there was a hint of discomfiture as well there.

"Ahaha… alright then, let's move to our next contestant. But before that, Takao-san, please wake up and go back to your chamber so we can mix up the order," Ryo called over the dark haired teen that slowly woke up while grinning goofily, muttering about 'how adorable his Shin-chan was' and so on that caused Midorima to turn like a tomato. After the shuffle, Ryo hurriedly looked at the note in his hand and read. "Okay, #3, please come up!"

"Oh, it's me?" Mibuchi raised his eyebrow. "Well, I'm not really confident that I'll get it right, but any of those delicious looking guys are fine," he smiled pleasantly as he made a beeline to the chambers. "Okay… I'm Mibuchi Reo, Rakuzan High, class 3E, seat number 22. As you can see, I've just changed partner, so forgive me if I make a mistake," he winked softly and the girls around immediately sighed distractedly.

"Let's see…" Mibuchi put his index finger on his mouth while thinking, looking at the hands presented in front of him and then tilted his head aside.

 _Anything will do as long as it's smaller than mine, right? It's a girl's hand after all_ —Mibuchi shrugged before he zeroed on a particular hand which had a very nice set of nails that came out from a hole at chamber 3. _Ooh… this hand is beautiful. It's pale and smaller than mine, but the nails are very well maintained. Does she manicure it? I should ask where she usually does the nails so I can go there to get mine done next time…"_

Mibuchi made up his mind and chose that hand. "Alright, I only met you a few minutes before, but I feel that we have an instant connection. It's probably because we were just dumped by our real partner, I believe," he laughed, followed by the spectators. "But I also believe that it's probably _fate_ that we meet here right now, because then we can console each other's broken heart. Will you please accept my offer to become my special someone here, Akari-san?" He reached out and touched that hand leisurely, before enveloping it with his palm.

"My… such sweet word from our seeker! He's truly a lady killer!" Hazuki grinned and Mibuchi cringed hearing that.

 _I prefer a man killer though—_ he protested inwardly.

"Then… is it right that Akari-san is in there?" Ryo signaled the background music to play the drum and after a suffocating minute, someone slid the curtain aside and stepped out of the chamber.

"Too bad, it's wrong this time," a guy with dark hair and a beauty spot under his right eye, known as Himuro Tatsuya from Yousen, chuckled lightly while covering his mouth with his right hand since his left one was still in Mibuchi's hold. Mibuchi's face fell slightly at that.

Hazuki snorted and the audience cackled at the mistake while Mibuchi covered his forehead, sighing in defeat. "I just suddenly hoped that I really was your partner. You're so pretty, Tat-chan," he said, very disappointed that the beauty in front of him had already had a partner.

Himuro chuckled again, probably amused at the way Mibuchi called him. "Unfortunately, indeed. If only we met sooner, Mibuchi-kun," he actually went along with Mibuchi's line.

"Aaah, it's not good at all…! Muro-chin is _miiiine~,_ " Murasakibara's voice was heard somewhere behind Mibuchi and Himuro looked over his shoulder at the tallest boy in the room.

"Sheesh… Atsushi…" a hint of pink dusted Himuro's cheeks and Mibuchi chuckled at that.

"You have it bad," and he continued laughing, not even losing to the still snickering audience and the chortling Hazuki. Ryo only shook his head at his friend's antics.

#

"Alright, it's too bad that Mibuchi-san made a blunder here, but it's tolerable because they are instant partners. Now, please go back to your respective spots, guys… we will call up the next contestant!" Ryo exclaimed while he tried to tone Hazuki's laughter down for a bit by covering his mouth. After that there was a pause in the game to give the sweethearts time to mix up their order.

A few minutes later, Hazuki was considerably calm even though he was still shaking and the shuffle was done, so they were ready to continue. "Now, we call contestant #5! Please come up hear and claim your sweetheart!" Ryo once again shouted and the lights were immediately focused on Aomine.

"Finally it's my turn," Aomine muttered while huffing slightly in annoyance for being made to wait. He wasn't a patient person after all. He briskly walked toward the MCs before going up the stage, and then stopped in front of the chambers. "Alright, I'm Aomine Daiki, Touou Academy, class 2F seat number 8." He stopped for a moment and took a deep breath before exhaling soundly. "Seriously that Satsuki… why do I have to do this? I only want to explain the misunderstanding to Kise, sheesh…"

Aomine grumbled quietly so as not be heard by anyone while he inspected the hands that were visible from where he stood. Done with the general observation, he came closer to examine them one by one more prominently. As long as he had known, Kise had pale and smooth complexion, even more than girls' sometimes. Still, he also knew that the blond had a man's hand, big and strong enough to play basketball in par with him.

 _Well, I'm still stronger though, but a hand that can play against me that hard can't be that slender—_ Aomine thought silently while giving a nonchalant look to the obvious girls' hand. He stopped near chamber 4 and looked it up more closely. _It's close, but it's too tan to be Kise's_ —he decided and moved to the next one. _This is big enough to be a man's hand, but it's too lean… whoa, the nails are manicured!_ —Aomine raised his eyebrow. _It's probably that Himuro guy, huh?_ —he shrugged before he moved to the next one and this time, Aomine was sure it was the right one.

After all, Aomine had held that hand once before. He did that again just to be sure and he was. "Kise," he called, forgetting that he had to sweet talk him first before doing any calling.

"Eh… did he just immediately call the name?" Hazuki criticized, sounding arid.

"Please sweet talk him first, Aomine-san," Ryo reminded him.

"I know, already! Shut your mouth up first!" Aomine turned to the both MCs and glared at them in intimidation, causing them to squeak in fear.

"We oppose violence!" they immediately stepped back in apprehension and Aomine just glowered at them until they clamped their mouth shut.

Aomine turned to face the chamber— _Kise's chamber_ , while letting out a long sigh once again. "I really don't get you, you know. I hate complicated stuff and everything about you is complex and difficult. Sure, you're pretty and easy going. Sure, you show a million yen smile almost daily and that model's smile of yours is brilliant enough to earn you a gazillion or more fans, but I never knew whether that smile is real or just your way to hide your true self. Sometimes even I wonder if I am being deceived by your smiling mask."

Aomine paused for a few seconds to take another breath and continued. "But I do know when we play basketball together or against each other, you express yourself honestly. Your serious face, your frustrated growl, your sparkling eyes when you fight a good match… I think I love those sides of you better than your model's side… That's why… it threw me off a number of times when you showed such expressions only to me even outside basketball game. I didn't understand what it meant at first, but recently, I realized that it was in fact your subtle way to tell me that you were willing to being honest with me… because maybe I was special to you… once. And yet, I was probably too late in catching your signal because earlier… when I said I didn't want you to give up on me, you were showing me that special, genuine smile of yours while you were thinking of someone else." He closed his eyes, reminiscing the painful twinge in his heart as he confessed of what he was thinking. It was probably futile now, but he still wanted Kise to know how he felt despite everything.

"Kise… you have made yourself clear that you already moved on, that you didn't need to know how I feel because it would only cause both of us heartache. Still, when I tried to walk away silently, this time you came to me and saw me when I was at my worst. And you should know that there is _NOTHING_ between me and Sakurai aside being classmates and teammates in the same basketball club. Heck, Sakurai was just there because Satsuki coerced him to mother me even though I didn't need it!" Now Aomine was pissed because everyone and everything seemed to go against him.

_Stupid Satsuki for being nosy, stupid Ryou for being so timid, stupid Kasamatsu for interrupting my confession and stupid Kise for having the worst timing ever in finding me!_

"That's why… once again I want you to stay still and hear me out." Aomine opened his eyes once again, tightening his grip on the hand while preparing his heart to say his feelings for the blond out loud. He took a deep breath and then- "Kise… I _want_ you," he said it. "I don't know if this is what you desire from me or if this will only worsen our already strained relationship, but I believe my instinct and my instinct tells me that I want you by my side." He was sure of it. There was no doubt in his feeling and in his voice. Now, if only Kise was willing to reconsider his decision to give up on Aomine, he wouldn't ask for more.

Surprisingly this time, both Hazuki and Ryo didn't comment on what was said in the confession. Even the audience was silent. Aomine wasn't sure why. Maybe they were still afraid that Aomine would reacted violently if any of them disturbed his and Kise's moment. Well, Aomine would probably do, because he had had enough interruption and bad timing for a day already. It was good that the classroom was quiet, though… since like this, he could immediately notice any response from Kise when the blond decided to give out one.

But the one inside the chamber didn't say anything. The hand in Aomine's grasp was tense, shaking, gripping back Aomine's one hard enough to hurt. There was no word escaping from the chamber and the person didn't make any move to open the curtain as well. It tested Aomine's patience. If Kise wanted to say no, he should just come out and say it to his face!

Aomine, feeling jittery and irritated, decided to take the matter on his own hand and used his free hand to open the curtain. What he saw inside the chamber though, caused him to widen his eyes in a bombshell. Because there… inside the secret chamber that wasn't so secretive was Kise… covering his crimson face, crying heavily in silence.

"H-hold on, what—?! Why the hell are you crying!?" Aomine instantly panicked because he had never seen Kise crying like that before. Sure, he cried crocodile tears very often, but the way Kise cried at this moment was so heartbreaking that even Aomine felt that he wanted to cry along with him. "Kise…!"

 _You really… don't need to hear my newly found feeling, huh…?_ —Aomine almost released Kise's hand while gritting his teeth bitterly, but Kise's grip on his was too strong to forsake. _And yet… you still isn't letting it go… you idiot…!_

"You're… the idiot one… Aomine-chi…!" Kise sobbed and hic-cupped, still covering his face tightly, as if he were trying to hide his unsightly face from the world even though billions of his fans would murder anyone that dared to call him ugly, since Kise possessed such pretty facial form that even lots of tears couldn't possibly ruined it, only enhancing its beauty even more.

"Huh, did I say that out loud?" Aomine huffed out a half-hearted laugh, feeling funny and sorry for himself because Kise still insulted his intelligence even at such delicate time. Well, he deserved it, he guessed. He was indeed a fool for ruining everything. Now he probably couldn't be friends with Kise anymore, right?

"Why… why didn't you say anything sooner…?" Kise sniveled again, this time almost making Aomine fall down comically.

"Didn't I just say that I only realized it recently?!" Aomine protested and Kise sobbed harder, apparently deciding not to hear anything Aomine said and focused on saying what was on his mind.

"Do you have any idea that how hard it is to give up on your first love?" Kise continued, still unwilling to show his face properly and sounding a little bit angry. "Do you know how much of tears I shed just for you?" His hold on Aomine's hand was tightening even more, almost to the point of crushing. Oh, and it was painful, indeed. Kise probably tried to make a point by doing that, conscious or not.

"I probably have no clue whatsoever, but… I think I don't want to think about giving up on you," Aomine huffed, struggling a little to pull Kise out of the chamber into his arms, surprising the blond and probably the entire classroom when he nudged Kise's soft, dazzling blond hair with his nose. Kise smelled nice, like flower. Seriously, what kind of guy smelled like flower? He inhaled Kise's fragrance to his heart content before sighing deeply while caressing his back gently. "I really do _want_ you."

Kise clenched at Aomine's uniform with his right hand snugly and buried his face on Aomine's shoulder, weeping some more, like he was relieved to be in Aomine's embrace. He chanted Aomine's name repeatedly as if it were a prayer. Well, probably he was praying that it was real and wasn't just a stupid joke or something. The blond kept crying and he didn't seem about to stop anytime soon, so Aomine turned to face the MCs who immediately winced in unison.

Aomine mouthed at them "I'm bringing him home," without a sound and both MCs nodded repetitively in nervous look. No one dared to make a sound as Aomine slowly steered the still sniveling Kise to the exit and then they were out of the room before Aomine slid the door close.

"Let's go home, Kise," Aomine said, patting Kise's head affectionately while smiling gently.

Kise was silent for awhile before sniffing once and- "Take me home, Aomine-chi," whispering almost inaudibly, causing Aomine to flush slightly at the somewhat _innocent_ -but not really- request.

"Hell yeah, I will," Aomine responded to it in hushed tone, pulling the blond to walk away from the festival to enjoy some alone time together… this time to a place where no one could disturb them anymore.

**End of Chapter 17**

**Tbc…**

* * *

**Extra Notes:**

**1) _Dakimakura_ :** a nice pillow to hug *lol*

 **2) _Dere-dere_ :** a loving personality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, great… now there isn't even any KagaKuro in this chapter…（；￣д￣） Seriously, me, the hell? This is supposed to be KagaKuro story, you dumbass! (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻ Ah man… too many pairing is hard to make, seriously. I haven't even put Mukkun/Himuro part in here, damn it! Just watch it, next chapter will be a KagaKuro revenge! Ah, as always… feedback? (◕‿◕✿)


	18. Bonfire, Award & You + Me = ?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so this is the conclusion. You plus me equals...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Kuroko no Basuke © Tadatoshi Fujimaki  
> Warning: KagaKuro fanservice, language, oOC-ness, typos, etc…
> 
> Alright, my beloved readers… sorry for the very late update. It's been… three, four months? Yeah, sorry 'bout that. Anyway, this story has come to an end. This will be the last chapter of the fic. I hope I met all the expectation (but don't hesitate to give your opinion in the review. I'm totally open for ideas).
> 
> Now, please do and ENJOY the last bit of the treat!

**Chapter 18: _Bonfire, Award & You + Me = ?_**

* * *

The classroom was still quiet, _too quiet_ even, when Hazuki realized that once again, the sweetheart was taken away from the game before the session ended. He groaned rather loudly at that and apparently snapped his partner back from his stunned silence as well.

"Oh, _oh_! Nooo! We lost another sweetheart again!" he whined and Ryo let out an acquiescent sigh in his wake.

"True… what is it with you guys and bailing out before the game ends…" the dark haired MC shook his head. "Well, at least this time around _someone_ actually cried on stage."

"Yeah, that was a lil bit unexpected, but Aomine-san had it under control… maybe," Hazuki nodded, not very sure, but heck if he knew anything. They were just asked by the pretty, pink-haired lady to help her friends 'click' with each other. They had not the slightest idea that the 'relationship' was such a complicated – _mess-of-long-unrequited-love-turns-requited–but-it's-probably-too-late_ \- kind. They were just glad it didn't end badly. That Aomine guy was kind of scary after all. Who knew what he'd do if he ended up getting rejected here. Hazuki shuddered slightly at that thought.

"So, maybe we just have to take another volunteer to fix the number of our sweethearts and move on?" Ryo suggested and it was with much approval that Hazuki nodded repeatedly _again_.

After that, the game progressed smoothly, to the delight of the spectators and the other participants. The next seeker was a Seirin guy in his senior year, attempting to impress his girlfriend by asking her to go to the same college with him in his sweet talk. Unfortunately, it didn't go really well because aside that he got his sweetheart _wrong_ (meaning he became the laughing stock since he picked _Takao_ of all people, to Midorima's horror), the actual partner decided to _end_ their relationship because of practical matter.

"Long distance relationship won't work, since I'm going to study abroad anyway," she shrugged after she came out a minute later, when the laughter subsided, and the guy's face fell unceremoniously even though he was laughing in good humor despite the humiliation before.

Even Hazuki didn't have the heart to make fun of him because he was broken hearted enough already. Luckily, the senior decided to stick around to the end despite his unfortunate state of affairs.

Short time later, the next seeker stepped up. This time, it was a university student, an alumnus of Seirin High. Apparently he had been in love with a _teacher_ in Seirin High during his senior year and he confessed to her at his graduation ceremony and she actually accepted him, since he was no longer her student.

It was quite a romantic albeit controversial tale because their age difference was quite prominent and yet they looked very happy together and no one seemed to want to address the problem at all. It was theirs to decide anyway. All in all, until the last seeker, it was great.

The said last seeker was the tallest guy in the room, probably over 2 meters if Hazuki didn't screw his estimation. He looked upward, sweating slightly, as he greeted the purple haired _giant_ in uniform he had never seen in the area before, and he had to gulp down slightly because the teen's expression, despite looking bored, held something that screamed ' _I can crush you with my little finger if I want to_ '. Hazuki didn't want to test that imagination _at all_.

"So, care to introduce yourself?" Ryo, seeming to notice Hazuki's wary, took the chance to address him in Hazuki's place.

Those violet colored eyes shifted on Ryo's now and he nodded, mumbling something about how tiresome it was to play this game. He dutifully accepted the microphone and introduced himself. "Murasakibara Atsushi, Yousen High, Class 2F, seat number 16." Then he went silent.

There was quite a looooong silence as Murasakibara seemed to think of what to say next. He shrugged instead, after several minutes. "I guess I should start looking for Muro-chin."

Everyone, especially Hazuki, was floored. "Wait a—! You took _that much_ time only to say such short line?!" He was almost hysterical because it was ridiculous, but Murasakibara _ignored_ his nitpicking and went straight to the chambers.

Hazuki fumed slightly, muttering "What is wrong with him?"

"Sheesh, calm down already. He's the last one, Hazuki. Bear it," Ryo chided slightly, tapping his back lightly.

"Fine," Hazuki huffed, still disgruntled but letting it slip anyway.

Murasakibara seemed to consider the first hand he saw, tilted his head before he bowed far down, his face close enough to the hand, and then started to sniff it.

_What are you, a dog?!_ —Hazuki nearly shouted, but to his credit, he slapped his mouth shut before he could, trying his best to contain his laughter behind his palms because this was really hilarious. Murasakibara actually _sniffed_ at the hand to recognize _the_ _owner_.

Apparently, Hazuki wasn't the only want thinking like that because some of the spectators snickered and that Midorima-guy grumbled 'how embarrassing' while face-palming. Hazuki cackled inwardly.

"Muro-chin, I found you~!" At least after the sixth time Murasakibara sniffed the hands presented on him, he called his sweetheart name.

"Sweet talk him first!" the spectators cried.

"Oh, yeah… I forgot," Murasakibara scratched his head, his talk slowing to a degree of a sheepish child's talk pattern, and it was impressively endearing. "Alright then… Muro-chin. You _smell delicious_. I'd love to _eat you up_ anytime, you know that right?"

Hazuki and Ryo (and the spectators) flushed red immediately at the suggestive lines, while Midorima visibly broke his glasses for the n times.

_What the hell?!_ —Hazuki couldn't help screeching on the inside, totally in shock. He meant, the guy was like a dork and he spoke like a kid and suddenly he _went there_?! Seriously?!

"T-there was no sweet talk in there… is it?" Ryo, face still visibly colored as red as tomato, whispered near Hazuki's heated ear, voice quivering slightly.

And apparently, Murasakibara wasn't done because he continued. "Muro-chin always gives me what I want. I love Muro-chin very much."

_Exactly what do you mean by 'what you want'?!_ —it almost broke Hazuki's brain because if it was combined with what Murasakibara said earlier, it could conjure up some… R-rated images involving Murasakibara and that pretty Himuro-guy in multiple very compromising positions and… with that body-size… yeah, Hazuki'd rather _not_ think to go there. Thank you very much.

"I'd like to enjoy Muro-chin every day. It will be awesome."

Okay, that was the final straw. "Oh My GOD! Get a room you guys!" Hazuki couldn't take it anymore as he covered his face in shame. His grandmother would roll in her grave if she peeked inside his mind right now. Heck, his mother would go ballistic on him, seriously.

"Sheesh, Atsushi. That's enough. You'll scar the poor kids' brain permanently that way." Himuro, _thank GOD_ , hastily came out of his hiding chamber, slapping his hands on Murasakibara's arms, all ruffled and lusciously attractive. "Seriously, at least put some context in your words." He looked as embarrassed as the rest of the class, but Hazuki admired the calmness in his tone.

"Wait, _context_?" That word had just registered in his brain after some time. Himuro turned to him and gave him an apologetic look.

"He talks about food. _Anytime_. It's about food, trust me." Himuro sighed.

Murasakibara visibly smirked and Ryo just realized that he had done it on purpose to mislead him and the entire class. He gaped, losing words, because then Murasakibara smiled innocently at Himuro as the dark haired teen fussed over him a little.

"But it's true, Muro-chin always smells tasty. I can smell you from miles away and I will always find you even in the middle of human sea," Murasakibara said as he held up one of Himuro's hand to his mouth and then licked at his fingertips. "You taste like honey."

Hazuki had never seen a pale, fair skin turned so red with Goosebumps in a matter of second. "Atsushi?!" Judging from his mortified reaction, apparently Himuro had just seen the real nature of this big-big guy.

_Have mercy on my innocent eyes!_ —Hazuki lamented as the girls started to scream like it was their pop idol saying seducing line to them. He could see from a distance the green haired teen faint, a soul escaping from his mouth. He felt like passing out too at this point.

"Alright, guys! Please stay in the Pg-rating act here!" Ryo seemed very flustered as he tried to take control of the situation. Hazuki could only send his 'good luck with that' prayer as he crouched down on the ground, hiding his face.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Kagami and Kuroko were hiding in the library.

Alright, hiding was a strong word. They merely found a quiet place so they could… _talk_. Sheesh, fine, not just _talking_ per se, because finally it was just the two of them again and Kagami was still worked up over Kuroko's very sweet confession. So they were deep inside the library, with no extra eyes or ears that could pry on their not-so-secret-relationship, and if Kagami was kissing him against the bookshelves, it wasn't his fault alone.

It was partially Kuroko's fault too since the bluenet enticed him. Kagami wanted to chat first, but remembering how long Kuroko had seemed to wait for his brain and heart to catch up with his and Kuroko's feeling, Kagami started to see how mouth-wateringly alluring Kuroko was actually; and even though he had decided to take things slow between them, his teenage hormone and mind wasn't yet equipped enough with _reasons_ not to familiarize himself with Kuroko's body.

So they kissed, deep, burning and feverish, like the way they kissed in their class-turned-into-planetarium earlier, but longer, needier, more passionate and if his hands were fumblingly adventurous, Kagami didn't do it on purpose.

"Kagami…kun…" Kuroko sighed rather hoarsely, his warm shallow breath ghosted over Kagami's face as Kagami pulled back slightly. His hand cupped at Kuroko's cheek; and Kuroko's half-lidded eyes stared deeply into his own, his pupil blown wide, almost coloring his amazing sky-blue eyes entirely black. His cheeks flushed pink and Kagami wanted to see more of that amazingly appealing expression, to _hear_ more of Kuroko's hushed, throaty melodious voice.

It caused Kagami to growl, losing control slightly as his animal instinct took over, because he then slid his hands down, one to seize Kuroko's waist and one to feel up Kuroko's buttock, pulling his body to flush against Kagami's taut one, while he turned his open mouthed kiss on Kuroko's tempting pale-pinked neck, smooching, sucking, licking and _biting,_ earning him more small gasps and pleasured moans and _dear God_ , Kagami could be addicted to Kuroko's skin already. He tasted so good.

Kuroko craned his head aside, giving Kagami more access to attack his exposed skin and both his hands were tangled in Kagami's hair, fisting it slightly, not sure if he was trying to bring Kagami closer or to hold him down a little. Kagami's larger body enveloped him like a hot blanket and Kuroko stood on his toes, probably trying to accommodate Kagami's height, even though Kagami didn't mind crouching down more if he could get to Kuroko's collarbone that peeked out behind his buttoned up white shirt. For some reason the front part of his _gakuran_ was already open and it was probably Kagami's doing even though the memory was a bit hazy with such heady scent around and arousal fogging his brain.

"Kuroko…" He licked at the damp skin of Kuroko's shoulder blade, slipping one of his knees between Kuroko's legs and hoisted his body up a little so Kuroko could sit down on his thigh. It was like an automatic gesture when Kuroko encircled his legs around Kagami's waist and he moaned again while Kagami grunted, grinding their excited lower halves together.

Ah, damned it all. Kagami wouldn't be able to stop himself at this rate. They were still in school and he vaguely heard the bell blaring and the announcement that ended the first day of their Spring Fest. Kuroko wasn't helping at all with the way he roamed his hands on Kagami's broad back, kneading, feeling and mapping it up like it was a wonder and the bluenet didn't seem to notice the orange glow of the sun almost setting completely streaming from the window above.

There would be a dance around the bonfire to end the first day of the festival. He wanted to take Kuroko to dance. He wanted to enjoy the festival in any form possible because this was once in a life-time experience he didn't want to miss.

So, through his will power alone, Kagami pulled back, as much as he would lament the loss of the warmth from Kuroko's body. "Kuroko… the dance…" He gasped through the kisses that Kuroko bestowed upon his face and neck right after he pulled back, not missing the dark bruise on Kuroko's skin, the mark he had left behind to tell the world that Kuroko was _his_ , though it was quite hidden if he buttoned-up his _gakuran_ to the top.

"Oh… right." Kuroko exhaled rather loudly, seeming to calm himself down after he sucked on Kagami's nape, where his neck met his shoulder. It seemed that Kuroko also wanted to leave his mark on him, most likely almost identical with the one adorning his own. He was still breathing hard though, and he rested his forehead on Kagami's, his palms on Kagami's cheeks, eyes closed and red lips slightly parted.

The very nice view only urged Kagami to ravish Kuroko again, but he held down his whimper, trying his best to restrain himself. "I want to… want to dance with you." It was almost painful to speak with his body still rigid with arousal, but he managed, because it distracted him from his want and need. "Would you like to dance with me, Kuroko?"

A small, fond smile bloomed on Kuroko's face. "Sure, Kagami-kun," he answered, sliding his hand down to straighten Kagami's collar before surging forward once again to peck Kagami on the corner of his lips. Kagami knew he was blushing with the way his face heated up but then Kuroko dropped his forehead to relax on Kagami's shoulder and hugged him close. "Take me to the dance floor." His voice was muffled on Kagami's uniform and his breath was warm on the skin beyond the material.

Kagami felt that he didn't want the festival to end at all.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

It was almost surreal when they arrived at the scene and saw the dancing arrangement. The bonfire-dance was supposed to be a closed event, only for Seirin High students, but apparently, some people had decided to make the school _theirs_ since they were on the yard, in position to dance as soon as the music started.

Kuroko only sighed in resignation at the view while Kagami cried out indignantly, "The hell are you guys doing here?!" and pointed at the rainbow colored guys around the bonfire.

"Not my idea," Midorima grumbled while Takao was snickering, holding Midorima's hands around his waist. Kuroko wasn't sure if the blush on Midorima's face was from the bonfire of if he was indeed blushing, but he looked very uncomfortable with their position.

"Isn't it alright? It's quite a shame if we pull out after being in so deep," Takao waggled his eyebrows, looking completely happy with this situation.

"Bonfire dance seems interesting, right, Muro-chin?" Murasakibara asked, smiling harmlessly while Himuro squirmed slightly in his embrace. The older teen seemed very self-conscious, but he dazedly nodded, speechless. Kuroko raised his eyebrows slightly at that, finding it rather strange that Himuro acted so docilely.

Kagami threw a suspicious glare at Murasakibara and then shifted his sight at Himuro as well, probably thinking that it was odd that Himuro allowed Murasakibara to do such thing. He was more controlling than that after all.

Though, what made the view most surreal in the display was the pair in front of them. Akashi Seijuurou… smiling pleasantly while holding a rather terrified Furihata; the poor brunet was this close to keel over, his body tense and trembling and… he seemed about to cry, judging from the tears collecting in and threatening to fall down from his eyes. But his face was so red too; it must have been the bonfire. There was no other explanation after all.

"Akashi-kun… what are you doing?" Kuroko almost felt the headache coming. Where was Mibuchi anyway? Shouldn't he be around to talk Akashi out of committing such irresponsible act?

"Isn't it obvious? I am about to dance with Kouki," Akashi also raised his eyebrows at Kuroko with ' _dare to question me?'_ expression.

Kuroko blinked once before staring silently at Akashi's peculiarly amused visage and then at Furihata's nervous one. He raised one of his eyebrows now, reading something. "You two…?" He didn't know how to ask the question. It was very… surprising and unlikely, but—

"Akashi and Furihata?!" Kagami gawked, looking completely distressed when he noticed that as well. "Wait a—! Let go of him, Akashi! What are you planning to do to him!?"

"It's none of your business, Kagami Taiga. I have no obligation to explain myself to you," Akashi didn't even regard him in the slightest and it seemed to piss Kagami off.

"What did you say?!"

"It-it's okay, Kagami! It's just a dance!" Furihata intervened before it escalated into a shouting match (obviously would be one-sided, but Kagami's yelling was loud enough to cover for both, so…). His voice was an octave higher, but looking at it closer, the brunet seemed to be determined enough to go through this.

_So it is not against his consent, huh?_ —Kuroko blinked again owlishly, still surprised that this kind of thing could happen at all. He meant, Akashi with Furihata, _together_? Oh my, wasn't that really interesting?

"I think some extra pairs of student will be alright to join our bonfire dance," Kuroko relented after a minute.

"Huh, is that really okay?" Kagami turned his protesting gaze at Kuroko and he nodded.

"It is not like there is a written rule about it. Moreover, student council staffs will not check up on the student one by one. They will not notice." Kuroko concluded. True, there was Furihata with the student council, but he doubted he would say anything at all.

Kagami looked like he was about to say something more, but he only opened his mouth and then clamped it shut for a brief moment, and then sighed deeply, apparently decide to look the other way as well. "I don't care anymore," he said before lifting his hand to offer at Kuroko. "Shall we dance?"

Kuroko hid his chuckle behind the back of palm before he took Kagami's offered hand with the other one. "Of course," he said smiled slightly, and they were immediately lined between Midorima-Takao pair and Murasakibara-Himuro pair. Kuroko didn't see Aomine and Kise there, but they probably went home already.

At the distance, Kuroko could see Kiyoshi and Hyuuga, sitting under Sakura tree with their shoulders bumped against each other, looking out to the yard where the bonfire was, giving a vibe of complete peace and ease. At another spot, he spotted Riko and Momoi, talking animatedly about something and Momoi seemed quite enthusiastic as Riko entertained her with whatever smart words she had. Around the corner at opposite direction was Sakurai, looking lost and unsure, but then someone familiar approached him. He wore glasses and his hair was shorter, but his trade-mark smiling face was recognizable as Imayoshi Shuuichi, currently a freshman in university. Sakurai looked surprised when he saw his senior there, but then he bowed, almost certainly apologizing about something earnestly, before his expression lit up like neon sign when Imayoshi sighed and said something to him. They left the premise soon after, Imayoshi's hand on Sakurai's waist as he guided him to the gate.

There were a lot of pairs, some completely platonic, some obviously desiring each other romantically, but at this moment, Kuroko only paid attention to the hands that were on his waist. When the music started, he let himself lost in the sway of their bodies, moving together, Kagami's gentle crimson eyes on his baby blues. It lasted only a few minutes before they had to change partners, but he decided that he didn't want to dance with anyone but Kagami and Kagami seemed to share his thought, so they locked eyes before leaving the circle together.

"Want to stay at my house tonight?" Kagami asked, looking fidgety for a moment when they retreated to grab their things before going home.

"Kagami-kun… pervert," Kuroko almost laughed at the way Kagami's face turned red in indignation and embarrassment as he shouted.

"KUROKO!"

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

The festival was still on-going until Sunday, and it wasn't until the evening that a problem occurred, especially for Class 2B. Before the closing ceremony and the award giving, Sasaki, Kagami and Kuroko were officially summoned to the Student Council Office through the sound system.

"Well, that was ominous," Sasaki crossed her arms on her chest in a huff as she, along with Kagami and Kuroko walked down the corridor to the east wing of the school building, where their destination laid.

"Do you have any inclination of what this is about, _Iinchou_ (1)?" Kuroko questioned without looking at her.

"We didn't do anything worth calling over, did we?" Kagami seemed to mull over if he or his friends had messed something up.

"I have an idea, but it's better if we just go along with it for the time being. I already prepare something… or actually _someone_ in case we get into trouble," she was confident that her grounding was flawless. Besides, she had made quite a powerful ally in a day. It was a great opportunity to test the influence of that ally.

"Iinchou, you must have been up to something wacky again," Kagami threw her a suspecting glance.

"Maybe… maybe not," she shrugged. "It depends on from whose perspective you see it," Sasaki whistled cheerfully, not in the slightest intimidated despite her soon-to-be opponent being the Student Council President, the _weird_ Arihara Takumi. Surely, he was great in many things in spite of his bizarre ideas sometimes, but he could be a fool too if he was played slowly and nicely.

"Let us hope that it is not about something bad," Kuroko sounded firm when he moved forward.

**#**

However, apparently it was quite of a problem when the three of them arrived at the office. Arihara was seated at his table, the vice president standing on his right and the executive committee on his left. The treasury and the public relation guys and girls stood behind them, including Furihata and Fukuda. Arihara looked somewhat grim and serious. The other… not really, but they weren't laughing, so they could be somber too.

Though, Furihata and Fukuda visibly looked edgy. Kagami looked upward at them silently asking what was going on, but they only shook their heads, apparently not really knowing why his class was summoned either.

"Sasaki Chinatsu, Kagami Taiga and Kuroko Tetsuya from Class 2B, I presume?" Arihara addressed them while shifting his crossed leg to the left side, both of his elbows rising to relax against the table surface and then he rested his chin on his joined prone hands.

"Those would be us, Arihara- _kaichou_ (2)" Sasaki nodded. "I assume you have something to say to us?" she confidently asked right after Kagami and Kuroko followed her example.

Arihara smiled. "Yah, I was just surprised when I heard both our duo national basketball athletes officially hook up in our Spring Festival. Congratulation, you two," he turned to Kagami and Kuroko appraisingly, his eyes shining and gleaming in amusement.

Kagami ad Kuroko had the decency to feel embarrassed, but mostly Kagami because he sure as hell flushed, sputtering obscenities in his surprise while Kuroko only thanked the president with a slightly bashful look, what with the way he looked down at his shoes, as if they were the most interesting things in the room.

Kagami knew their current relationship was kind of a public secret, but was it necessary for their Student Council President to personally _congratulate_ them like that? Or what, was he making fun of them? Since the others snickered and chuckled, it was close to a jest, right? However, Arihara looked honest and earnest when he praised them, so Kagami was torn between feeling offended and grateful.

"I also heard you guys _rocked_ in your class drama. The response from the audiences was overwhelming in the first day, thanks to your spectacular play," Arihara continued, now glancing at Sasaki.

"Of course. It was the effort of the entire Class 2B, and they are all brilliant." she smiled happily, actually sounding quite sincere when she expressed her gratification of the compliment.

"Good. All was nice and well executed, yet sadly… I heard some… disturbing rumors," Arihara frowned now, looking the three of them calculatingly. "They said you called _actors_ from outside to play in you play. Is that true?"

_Ah… so he's talking about those Miracle Rainbows, huh?_ —Kagami caught up pretty quickly in understanding while Sasaki pursed her lips and Kuroko sighed.

"We have a very good reason to do that. Besides, no one called them. They volunteered," Sasaki argued. "And they weren't professional actors. They were just high school students, the same as us," she showed a deviant look in her narrowed eyes.

" _Lies_ ," someone else interrupted before Arihara could say anything and a blond haired girl, which was instantly identified as Kirihara… _something_ (Kagami honestly didn't remember much about her), emerged from the shadow of the room corner. "I have done my research, you know. I know who they are. One of them is even in modeling industry," she tilted her chin up arrogantly, sneering at Sasaki and by extension, at Kagami and Kuroko as well.

"Why, hello, Kirihara Ayano-san from Class 2A, I thought you were hiding your shameful face in the shadow because you are _ashamed_ of your own class play the other day. I couldn't figure out why you felt the need to research those instant actors-substitutes who even didn't have any script and yet went to the play anyway as a bunch of _amateurs_. I'm certain that my class play migrated ocean wide away from our original manuscript, you know, since _someone decided to sabotage our original actors_. Yet, your class didn't stand a chance on defeating our class play audience' response, how _pitiful_." Sasaki turned her sweet poisonous sarcastic smile at Kirihara while the blond girl visibly flinched before she snarled at Sasaki with unrivaled resentment.

"Are you making accusation?!" Kirihara challenged, sounding affronted.

"Who, me? And whom did I accuse of doing such _horrible thing_ without remorse?" Sasaki's smile never faltered, if not, it grew more prominent. Kagami gulped and Kuroko looked slightly concerned because they almost could see the spark of electricity between those girls' eyes.

"Ladies, pipe down will you," Arihara warned, but identical irritated glares from both Sasaki and Kirihara were thrown at him in response, and he visibly sweated out a little bit. "We are civilized people, here. Don't start a cat fight in my office."

"Kaichou! She broke the rules in performing her class drama play! Her class should be disqualified from the popularity poll!" Kirihara sniped.

"I didn't remember breaking any written rules, though," Sasaki huffed, staring at the president expectantly.

Kagami raised his eyebrows. "It isn't in the written rule?" He turned to Kuroko who shook his head slightly.

"If there is, I surely do not notice it."

"Well, it isn't really written per se, but normally since it _is_ Seirin Spring Festival, it should be done by Seirin students…" Arihara mused, though he seemed to regard Sasaki's reason as passable. At least not grave enough to disqualify Class 2B completely from the popularity poll. "Asking other school students to cast in your class play is too much, don't you think? What happened to the rest of your class members?"

"Everyone got their own roles, not just on-stage, but also off-stage, Arihara-kaichou," Sasaki defended her argument insistently. "And, I told you that we didn't ask for them to perform. _They offered_ , at least their leader did."

Sasaki smirked at Kirihara and she bristled and hissed at her like an angry cat.

"Who are these people, actually?" Arihara raised his eyebrows now, apparently very curious.

"Actually, why don't you meet the leader yourself? He's here after all," Sasaki's smirk was now directed at him.

"Akashi-kun is here?" Kuroko widened his eyes.

"What?!" and Kagami was alarmed.

"There is no need to be surprised, Kagami Taiga." Then someone opened the door to the office, revealing Akashi Seijuurou's figure in all his glory.

"Geeh! Akashi?! Why the hell are you doing here?!" Kagami instantly squeaked in shock seeing the shorter red head. He looked as majestic and charismatic as usual, but that was what annoyed Kagami most.

"I have a private matter to attend to," Akashi paused and his gaze flitted slightly to the back of Arihara's shoulder, meeting Furihata's wide, surprised looking eyes. Akashi's lips corner twitched up slightly, a small smile blooming. "I'm here for my Kouki."

Furihata flushed in response while Fukuda stared at him and then at Akashi in disbelief, opening and closing his mouth ridiculously.

"But, I heard my friend here," Akashi continued, tilting his chin up to move his eyes on Sasaki's glittering ones, "-need some _evidence_ s that she did not break any specific rules of the festival itself. I did offer her to help with the drama play, because when she sought help to Student Council, they were unable to help her. You could ask your public relation staffs behind you, to that dark haired one and Kouki." He looked at Arihara with an absolute confidence in his mismatched orbs and Arihara turned to address both Furihata and Fukuda to confirm it.

"It's true, _kaichou_. Sasaki-san did go ask for the student council for help, but it was at recess time, so no one except me and Fukuda were in the office." Furihata said and Fukuda nodded in support.

Arihara frowned. "You should have reported such thing immediately," he huffed.

"We _did_. You said we could just write it up and you'd read it later," Furihata reminded him.

"Oh… well, I guess it is student council's mistake. Alright, Class 2B is permitted to use the help then, no penalty." Arihara shrugged nonchalantly. Sasaki's eyes lit up in triumph while Kagami and Kuroko let out a sigh of relief. Even Akashi seemed to approve the decision.

"What?! Hold on a sec! That's not fair at all!" Only Kirihara announced her protest hard.

"Ah, I recall your face," Akashi turned his electric gaze at the blond girl and she winced in reflex. "You seemed to be very restless when you peeked in the dressing room yesterday as I caught your gaze. Would you be so generous to explain your strange behavior, miss?"

Kirihara looked cornered for a moment before she harrumphed and turned around to walk away, out of the office, probably running away to save her face.

"Well, at least she knows how to pull back when it is her loss," Sasaki huffed as well, still narrowing her eyes at the ajar door since Kirihara didn't seem to bother to close the door in her brusque leaving.

"Is it alright not to question her about the sabotage?" Akashi queried, raising his eyebrow slightly. _Isn't she responsible for that?_ —was left unsaid, but it was quite clear in his expression.

"It's fine. It wasn't that serious," Sasaki dismissed it easily.

"No, I think it was quite life-threatening, though. It's a wonder they could survive Coach Aida's cooking assault…" Kagami muttered guiltily, a bead of sweat sliding down his cheek.

"So, Arihara-kaichou, is it alright if we go back now? I believe all problems are solved." Kuroko chimed in so suddenly, surprising the others. Even Kagami was surprised, slightly forgot that he was there. He berated himself inwardly for that. "And… the closing ceremony is about to begin." He notified.

"Oh, yeah, of course. You can go…" Arihara blinked once, twice, seeming to be brought back from his train of thought during Akashi, Sasaki and Kirihara's conversation earlier. He set his gaze at Akashi for a moment before offering a friendly gesture. "Thank you for helping with our school festival. You seem to be a very capable leader."

"I _am_ a capable leader," Akashi easily corrected, causing the others to sweat drop. "Now, Kouki, come. I'm here to pick you up." He once again turned his inviting gaze at Furihata and the brunet immediately excused himself from the office and practically flew into Akashi's waiting arms.

"S-sorry for making you wait, Akashi-kun…"

"It's _Seijuurou_ for you, remember?"

The others could only gape at that too sweet, dreamlike view where Akashi put his hand on Furihata's lower back while smiling gently at him, guiding him to exit the room, in stunned silence.

"Tell me I fell asleep somewhere and was dreaming." Kagami couldn't help rubbing his eyes, still disbelieving his sight.

"I believe Akashi-kun seriously took a liking on Furihata-kun," Kuroko commented in leveled tone to Kagami's total horror.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

Every student attended the closing ceremony. They were grouped according to their class and were anxiously waiting for the popularity poll winner to be announced. The MCs, who were picked personally by the Student Council President, enthusiastically led the ceremony. There were speech from the principal, the student council president, and the head of the festival personnel before the event moved to the award.

And now… it was an award for the hottest guy in Seirin High.

"Aaaand, the title of the hottest guy in Seirin High falls to…" the round light was spun very fast before it finally fell directly on…

…Kiyoshi's head. "Huh?" he blinked, pointing at himself, looking dumbfounded in the spotlight.

"Kiyoshi Teppei from Class 3B!" the announcer cried out and the applause was instantly rose like a flood-gate.

"Wow, congrats, man!"

"Kiyoshi! Congratulation!"

"Awesome!"

Shower after shower of praise were thrown in Kiyoshi's direction as he blushed slightly. He dutifully laughed in easy, cheery look as he was called to stand on the podium, along with the other award winners.

There was the prettiest girl, the nicest guy, the weirdest guy, the most favorite person, and finally the most adored couple.

"Kagami Taiga and Kuroko Tetsuya from Class 2B!" the announcer shouted in cheer and everyone applauded _again_ , even merrier than the previous ones.

"Seriously?!" Kagami really didn't expect that there was that kind of award. Besides, _what the hell_?! He and Kuroko only started their official relationship two days ago for God's sake!

"At least we didn't have to pose as Prince Kagami and Doll Princess Kuroko in this award," Kuroko seemed to take the solace in not having to cross-dress this time. Kagami though, still felt rather incensed because their relationship wasn't a spectacle, damn it!

Still, they still had to come up on the podium. Kiyoshi congratulated them with a nice smile and both Kagami and Kuroko turned rather pink when the other winners followed Kiyoshi's example. They even ensured them that they were totally rooting for them.

"Aww, they are adorable!" the girls giggled at Kagami and Kuroko when they fumbled slightly; giving a short speech about how they felt to be regarded as the most adored couple.

Honestly, Kagami had no idea what he was saying because his heart beat really hard and he was super awkward standing in front of people and _talking_. It was utterly different from performing in drama play since there was no script and he had to speak out his feeling. He remembered thanking the participants for picking him and Kuroko, though… so he guessed he didn't mess up entirely.

Kuroko, on the other hand, didn't really show his feelings with his expression, but he said something sweet about Kagami and the girls squealed at him for being too cute. Kagami wanted to swipe his feet up and kiss him then and there, but he refrained from doing so because doing _that_ publicly was out of option. He had embarrassed himself enough. Thank you very much.

Done with the individual award, now it was the time for the collective award. "And the most popular class goes to… CLASS 3D with their High School Host Guiding Club!" the MC threw the flowers and the confetti to the whooping Class 3D, while the others clapped their hands in awe.

"Of course we are the champion!" Riko laughed merrily, jumping and holding Hyuuga to dance with her in total joy. Hyuuga only grinned at that while Izuki lifted both his hands to the sky, looking very thrilled as well.

It continued with the award of the most delicious café and food-stand, which fell into Koganei and Mitobe's class, 3C, and the most amazing drama play that of course fell into Class 2B with their extra-ordinary Doll Princess drama.

* * *

**~Kagami x Kuroko~**

* * *

The award for the individual winners turned out to be tickets to stay over at the hot-spring inn near Fujiyama and the tickets came in pair, so the winner could take a friend or a lover in the first two days of the spring vacation. The award for the collective winner was money, _a lot of it,_ to be used to add the class fund, to maintain the class, to improve the class room, or to simply divide between the class members.

Kuroko stared at the ticket on his hand. If he wanted to go, he could always use Kagami's pair ticket. So, what would he do with his own ticket, then?

"Kuroko, are we going to the hot-spring?" Kagami slipped his hands and arms around Kuroko's body while resting his chin on Kuroko's shoulder, looking at the ticket on Kuroko's hand. Yes, he was visiting Kagami's house and they had been playing card while listening to western CD that Kagami owned before Kagami declared he was hungry and went to cook some supper as he left Kuroko to read his novel. Then, he found the ticket slipped between the pages.

"I want to go, though. We can use your ticket and I think I will give my own ticket to someone else," Kuroko turned aside slightly, giving Kagami a light kiss on the cheek.

"Hmm… do you have someone in mind?" Kagami asked, touching the tip of the ticket.

"Not really, I guess I have to make random offer to one of our friends," Kuroko shrugged before he slipped the ticket back into the page and closed the book. "Now, what are we having for supper?" He looked at Kagami's eyes, his stomach rumbling slightly.

"I knew it. You date me for my cooking skill," Kagami accused, but there was no heat in his tone and he was grinning, so Kuroko guessed it was quite elating.

"That and _this_ ," Kuroko reached his hand to tangle on Kagami's hair, pulling the strand down lightly and mashed his lips into Kagami's laughing ones.

"Of course it _is_ ," Kagami chuckled and shifted his body so he could angle Kuroko's face to deepen their kiss.

Both Kagami and Kuroko didn't know what lay in front of them afterwards, but they felt that their relationship would be able to stand a chance to survive. It might be difficult if they were alone, but there were two of them and they had support from their friends.

It might be scary and full of uncertainties, but both Kagami and Kuroko knew that what they had together was something very powerful.

Of course it was.

_Because you + me = love._

**End of Chapter 18**

* * *

  
**You + Me = ? ~** _**Fin~** _  


* * *

**Additional Notes:**

**1)** _ **Iinchou**_ **:** Class President

**2)** _ **Kaichou**_ **:** Chief/Student Council President

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's done. Yes, this chapter is the end of the story. No, I don't plan any sequel, but tell me if you have any idea for any sequel *lol* I don't know, maybe the hot-spring trip or something, but honestly I haven't thought about that at all *sweats*.
> 
> Also, thanks a LOT for sticking with me till the end. I hope you enjoy every chapter just as much as I enjoyed making it. And-and, of course feed-back… dear lord I need a LOT of feed-back to increase my competency in writing…
> 
> Alright, I think it's enough babble. See you guys in another project!
> 
> With love,
> 
> lunaryu~


End file.
